Telegram apps fall foul of iOS App Store content rules | Hacker News Reader

Telegram apps fall foul of iOS App Store content rules

techcrunch.com

19 pointszhuxuefeng199411 comments

Main discussion here (216 points, 145 comments):

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16281986

What's the possibility of Signal being removed? That's one of my most used apps

Articles about App Store rejection are always a bit sensationalized. I'm not very familiar with Telegram, but I think the issue here is that by default on a fresh install there are public channels that could contain "obscene content".

There are no public channels in Signal, so there's nothing objectionable for an app reviewer to see on first launch. Apple doesn't restrict any form of end-to-end crypto... except VPN apps in China. :-\

> I'm not very familiar with Telegram, but I think the issue here is that by default on a fresh install there are public channels that could contain "obscene content".

Correct. Telegram has public channels and groups, many of which are used to distribute porn. Earlier versions of Telegram for iOS prevented users from joining (and possibly even viewing?) these channels -- this feature was inadvertently lost in the "Telegram X" rewrite, which led to Apple's temporary removal of the app.

You mean that there’s no way to join these discussions in Apple-sanctioned versions? I mean, I’m all for sensible defaults and protecting unwitting users, but if somebody wants to join and view, there should be something they can toggle somewhere to enable that functionality.

When developing for iOS, you "serve at the pleasure of the King".

Also true for Android, but the king in this case is a bit more easy going.

Not really true for Android as there are alternative ways to distribute Android apps in the form of alternative app repositories like FDroid, Aptoide, Amazon. It is also possible to sideload apk's without the need for 'rooting', this in contrast to iOS.

I didn't know you couldn't install apps from unofficial sources on iOS!

Still, I think that getting your app banned from Play Store 99.9% of the times will mean an effectively dead app.

As an Android app developer, I try to publish on as many stores as possible, but traffic from alternate stores is unfortunatelly almost non-existent.

True, the Play Store is the nexus of Android app distribution. The fact that it is not the only venue is a big advantage for both Android users as well as developers as it makes it impossible for a single party - be it Google or an entity pressuring Google into acting in a certain way - to keep applications from reaching users. Although only a small fraction of the total flow it is nevertheless significant in what it embodies: freedom from censorship.

I generally agree.

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