Developer Accounts Removed
Viktor Seraleev (Hacker News):
On August 21, 2023, Apple removed our Reely application during the update review. Along with the removal, we received a notification citing a violation of section 3.2(f) of the Apple Developer Program License Agreement[…]
[…]
Again, this reason does not specify which particular application the claim pertains to. What are we accused of? Review manipulation or some violations on the payment screen?
[…]
We are convinced that our account has been deliberately targeted[…] On Instagram, we encountered an advertisement for our Rolly application. It turned out that our creatives were stolen and used to promote another application in the same niche. […] Our Rolly application was entirely copied by the developer NIGII Technologies LTD. […] We are confident that the purchase of fake reviews led to the account being blocked and all applications being removed.
They appealed to Apple, but the account was closed, and they were told the decision was final.
I created my developer account about 2 years ago, I develop game engines in my free time, so I only used my account to read documentation and download Metal resources. Nothing else. I do not even log in to the app store / testflight page. I have no app store listings and I haven’t tried to send any.
2 weeks ago, I got an email about my developer account being terminated.
Previously:
- Locked Out of Apple Developer Accounts
- Deluge of Fake Mac App Store Reviews
- Developer Account In Limbo Due to Popularity
- Apple Accounts “Permanently” Blocked
- Student’s Developer Account Mistakenly Terminated
- Another Developer Account Nearly Terminated
- Developer Accounts Nearly Terminated
- Guilherme Rambo Locked Out of Apple Developer Account
- Apple and Kapeli Respond About Dash
Update (2026-11-10): Andy Ibanez:
Having suffered this before, and now having received a 4.3 Spam of an app with Apple leaving me on read when it comes to my appeal, it is seriously time to start considering leaving the App Store. If Apple cannot provide developers with the experience they deserve, they need to either open up the App Store or hire more people. The current situation with the App Store is an extreme disappointment, and I’m sure developers are getting tired of getting treated like trash.
1 Comment RSS · Twitter · Mastodon
I don't understand this post. It's from 2023. At the time, the dev was making $400k/year.
Fast forward to 2026, same dev is out there living his best life, boosting Apple 24/7 on X, giving advice to other Apple developers about how to succeed in App Review, and even claims to have "a personal manager at the App Store".
Where can I sign up to get treated this poorly?
