Apple has revealed that on the store pages of apps that use external payments, a warning is displayed before the name or icon of the app as if it were a dangerous app
In order to comply with the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA) from 2024, Apple
Michael Tsai - Blog - Critical Warning for External Purchases in App Store
https://mjtsai.com/blog/2025/05/14/critical-warning-for-external-purchases-in-app-store/
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It has been revealed that apps that use external payments in the App Store, Apple's official app store, will display a warning at the top of the app page. Below is an example of an app page where the warning appears. At the top of the page, before the app's name or icon, a warning is displayed stating, 'This app does not support the App Store's private, secure payment system. This app uses external payments. Learn more .' This warning appears if you are not using Apple's payment system, in-app purchasing (IAP), and apps that display this warning will have 'External Purchases' displayed to the right of the 'Get' button.
Instacar is a Hungarian app that lets users check mileage and prices of used cars. It is not available in the US App Store, but it is one of the top five most popular apps in Hungary in the Business category and has thousands of positive reviews.
Technology media The Verge pointed out, 'Instacar is not a service that requires attention. Apple's only complaint is that Instacar uses an external payment system and doesn't have the App Store's payment features, such as purchase history, family sharing, and integrated subscription management.'
In addition to Instacar, similar warnings have also been confirmed to be displayed on German meditation app
Along with the warning message, Apple has posted a link to a page called ' Alternative payment options on the App Store in the European Union ,' which includes instructions on using external payments, such as 'When you create an account on an external website, you may need to provide personal information, including payment information, directly to the developer or a third-party partner.' 'You trust that the developer, and their partners and payment providers, will handle your information in accordance with their respective privacy and security controls.'
About alternative payment options on the App Store in the European Union : App Store Story
https://apps.apple.com/hu/story/id1726640865
In fact, this warning appears to have been in place since Apple became DMA compliant in March 2024. The reason this warning has not been a hot topic until now is likely because there were almost no apps that adopted external payments.
Apple has announced on a support page for developers titled ' Alternative payment options in the App Store in the European Union ' that when it allows external payments in March 2024 in compliance with the DMA, it will display a warning on the App Store page of apps that use external payments. However, at this point, the warning was displayed using a gray icon instead of a red icon.
Technology blogger John Gruber said of the warning, 'I think this is a very useful piece of information that should be on the app's App Store page. Users should know what to expect, and it's clear that most iPhone users expect most digital goods transactions to go through Apple's in-app purchasing system. The only problem with it as it stands is that it looks like a scary warning. It should be more of a privacy label .'
In addition, following the lawsuit against Epic Games, Apple is prohibited from blocking links to purchases outside of the app or imposing high fees. In response to this, Amazon's e-book app Kindle and others have already introduced a 'Get Book' button to the iOS version of the Kindle app, but The Verge points out that a similar warning message is also displayed for these apps.
'Get Books' button appears on Amazon Kindle iOS app as Apple loses lawsuit against Epic Games - GIGAZINE
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