App Store: Apple lets ChatGPT clone through again
With the ChatGPT boom, clones have repeatedly appeared. Now a fake app has made it into the charts again. Apple has since taken action against it.
ChatGPT app on a smartphone (in false colors): Here is the real one.
(Image: Tada Images/Shutterstock.com)
Actually, Apple's in-house review department is supposed to ensure that no fakes, no fraud, and no other problematic apps get into the App Store. After all, this is one of the main reasons why the company controls software distribution on iPhone and iPad so strictly. It is therefore very surprising when simple clones are simply allowed through – something that has happened regularly for years. Now it has happened again with an app that pretended to be the official ChatGPT app from OpenAI. It even reached top positions in the app store charts, which in turn likely significantly increased its distribution.
Clones again and again
The topic of ChatGPT clones for iOS has existed since the popular chatbot was released in November 2022. Only when an official application was released in May 2023 did the problem subside; there is also an official Mac version. It is therefore surprising that the issue has resurfaced. One of the apps now affected was also available for Mac. The product had a generic name (AI Chatbot) but listed trademarked products in the subtitle – including the terms "OpenAI", "ChatGPT", and "GPT-5".
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The clone app has since been removed from the App Store by Apple after media reports about it; however, it is now available again. In the USA, the application climbed so high thanks to good search engine optimization that it pushed aside official customers. OpenAI's branding was also imitated, and the developers charged in-app payments between 7 euros per week and 40 euros per year. A "Lifetime Subscription" cost 60 euros. The app comes from a company in Pakistan.
Data leakage as a problem
In addition to the fact that it remains unclear whether one actually receives a real service for one's in-app fee – even if official API access is purchased, OpenAI & Co. could block it.
After all, there is still the problem of data leakage: Many people enter intimate data into chatbots, which could be diverted and/or marketed by the providers. However, Apple requires appropriate disclosures. Whether these can always be relied upon is another question.
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