Popular decentralized digital asset wallet MetaMask recently found itself in a precarious situation when it was temporarily removed from the Apple App Store. This incident, however, was resolved by the development team, which acknowledged the incident on social media platform X.
MetaMask Taken Down on the App Store
In an October 14 post on X, MetaMask noted that its application couldn’t be downloaded from Apple’s App Store. The digital asset wallet, which claims to have over 30 million users worldwide, resolved the issue after almost an hour while claiming that the incident was not related to anything malicious or an exploit. It stated:
“FYI: We’re aware that MetaMask isn’t currently available for download on the App Store. This is not related to anything malicious, and our team is working hard to resolve it ASAP. We expect MetaMask to be back on the App Store shortly, and we sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.”
The app’s developers asked users to report any fake application on the App Store that they came across. The decentralized wallet stated that its top priority was to sort out the situation and protect users from these fake applications. Meanwhile, the application was available for download on Google Play, another post revealed.
Interestingly, a clear reason for the Apple Store takedown was not provided by either party, but in an interview, a spokesperson revealed that the incident was “not a security concern, and there is no compromise or action required on users’ part. Additionally, it’s not related to the app’s functionality.“
In the recent incident, once the application was back on the App Store, the wallet took to X to notify its users.
Similar Situations with Android
A similar situation was witnessed back in 2019 when MetaMask was removed from the Google Play Store for violating Google’s financial services policies. The decentralized wallet stated at that time that it would provide its services to users on Android platforms via other means until they migrated to “something more free.”
Apple’s policies could likely be behind the app’s disappearance. According to the Apple Store guidelines, applications that run “unrelated background processes,” such as digital asset mining, are not allowed. This could be the reason behind MetaMask’s removal. The issue could not be resolved until the development team demonstrated compliance with Apple’s policies.
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