A new published by child safety groups Heat Initiative and ParentsTogether Action details the alarming presence of inappropriate apps deemed suitable for children as young as four years old on the Apple App Store. The groups worked with a researcher to review as many apps as possible within 24 hours and said they ultimately identified more than 200 apps that contained “concerning content or features” given the age for which they were rated – including chat with strangers and AI girlfriend. apps, gaming apps with sexual or violent prompts and images, and AI-based appearance rating apps. Engadget has contacted Apple for comment and will update this story after receiving a response.
The research focused on apps categorized by age 4+, 9+ and 12+ in categories considered “at risk”: chat (including AI and stranger chat apps), beauty, diet and weight loss, unfiltered Internet access (applications to access prohibited sites in schools) and games. Among the findings, the report states that at least 24 sex games and 9 stranger chat apps were marked as appropriate for children in these age groups. The study also identified 40 apps allowing unfiltered internet access and 75 apps related to beauty, body image and weight loss carrying these age categories, as well as 28 shooting and crime games. Collectively, the approximately 200 offending apps spotted during the 24-hour investigation have been downloaded more than 550 million times, according to Heat Initiative.
Around 800 apps were reviewed in total, and the research found that some categories were more likely than others to feature apps with age ratings that were too low. For chat apps and games aimed at strangers, “fewer of them were deemed appropriate for children,” the report said. In most cases, they were 17 and over. But in the categories of weight loss and unfiltered Internet access, “almost all apps reviewed were approved for children ages 4 and older.” The report calls on Apple to do better on child safety measures on the App Store, urging the company to use third-party raters to check the age rating of apps before they are available for download and to make its age classification process transparent. to consumers. You can read the full report, Rotten notes: 24 hours on the Apple App Store, here.
