This is probably THE best news every honest apple app developer will hear. At the same time, a warning to Apple apps scammers, cheaters and fakers who are brainstorming not what the latest application to build but rather how to break the Apple’s security system. Perhaps, Mr. Phil Schiller is looking at your profile right now.
So do you want to be an iPhone app developer? Do you think money would easily go into your pocket by developing child’s play apps like iFart, Ka-ching sound effect, door knock sound effect, or T-Pains? Creating applications for apple might be a great opportunity but with several entries and tough senior competitors, newbie developers may get lost in the process.
Some “wise” developers thought of doing blackhat methods to be able to make profit from their work. FYI, Apple busted the following so please don’t attempt to copy them. Thanks to Mashable for jotting down this Apple app history.
1. Search Manipulation – blackhat developers found a way to “cloak” the first character of their app say “++++111AAASolitaire for iPhone” and make it look “Solitaire for iPhone”. These developers aim to rank higher in searches so people would see their apps and buy it. I guess, Google had the same problem before.
2. Fake Reviews – some app developer post fake reviews to elevate the status and standing of their applications. But of course, that would be bad for consumers since they weren’t getting honest reviews. Apple revised the review process for their apps requiring people should download the apps first before they can make a review.
3. Auto 5-star review – a few apple app developers thought of making an automated 5-star reviewer so as to give their applications a high remark. Ranking is important because it will get your applications place on top of other low-ranked apps. This means more conversion for you but consequently a lost to the user.
The latest apple app cheater concentrated on making fake reviews for his applications. But unlike item no. 2, this cheater made the review look legit and if not for a keen apple observer, this dude’s wrong deed would probably have went on for a longer period.
The duper’s name is Molinker – as in Molinker Inc. and I would say that it was a large app developer. It allegedly produced over 1000 apple apps (about 1% of Apple’s total applications). We’re not sure if Molinker produced automated fake reviews or manually manipulated it. But according to SCW – the keen observer who investigated this case – all of Molinker’s apps got pretty high scores on reviews and just a few low remarks. SCW had concrete proofs to support his allegations over Molinker (see below for proof). After gathering enough evidences, he reported to Mr. Phil Schiller of Apple.
The result? All 1000 applications developed by Molinker were trashed by Apple. One more thing, SCW confirmed on his letter that Molinker allegedly copy the apps he published from other developers.
Pretty wise guy ei? But in the end, doing something illegal and stupid would only bite you from behind sooner or later. So, the moral of this story is: Don’t deceive people, you can earn money and decent living by helping others. That is better than losing all your cash flow more, people will never trust you again – a double whammy. Yikes!
(images via iphoneography)
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