A Vision Test Disguised as a Pirated Movies App Successfully Infiltrates the Apple App Store
Apps that violate the rules of Apple’s App Store or Google Play are rarely made available to users. However, sometimes they manage to bypass the reviewers and are downloaded several times from the App Store or Play Store.
One such case is Apple’s App Store’s Kimi app, which streams pirated movies and unexpectedly reached No. 8 on the trending list of free entertainment apps on the Apple iOS App Store, as reported by The Verge.
The app posed as an eye test app, but when opened revealed a collection of TV shows and movies that users could download and watch. Interestingly, it didn’t use a deceptive interface or hide pirated content; everything was boldly presented upon opening. This begs the question of how Apple App reviewers missed it.
In particular, the Kimi app had a description that claimed to be an eye test app, even though it offered movies and TV shows for free with ads.
The app entered Apple’s App Store in September of last year, and remained active until The Verge’s story. Apple has since removed the app from the App Store, so it is no longer available for download.
In recent memory, it’s worth noting that this is the second time such an app has infiltrated the App Store. Just last week, LastPass, a well-known password manager, warned users about a malicious clone named “LassPass”. This cheat mimicked LastPass in terms of design, interface, and branding. Although the app was quickly removed after the company raised its concerns, that doesn’t change the potential risk it poses. It is possible that a fraudulent application may have convinced users to provide login information, passwords to various websites and credentials, putting users at risk of being exploited by a fraudulent developer.
