PSA: Watch Out for Fake ChatGPT Apps and Other Scams in the App Store
Recently, there has been an increase in the number of complaints from App Store users about limited functionality apps charging unreasonably high prices. Latest trends show that a large number of ChatGPT apps have invaded the Mac App Store recently.
Privacy 1st researcher, Alex Kleber, did a deep dive into the Mac App Store after noticing an alarming number of ChatGPT apps from the same handful of developers. Kleber found dozens of copycat OpenAI/ChatGPT apps on the Mac App Store, with “shady” developers “flooding” the platform with apps that are nearly identical to confuse consumers and shut out other developers.
Most of these ChatGPT apps are charging significantly high prices by taking advantage of the popularity of chatbots. On the web, ChatGPT is free to use. OpenAI offers a “Plus” program for $20 a month. Microsoft’s Bing chatbot is free, and Google Bard, Google’s version of a chatbot, is also free. Most, if not all, of the sketchy-named and relatively new "ChatGPT" apps in the iOS and macOS App Stores are scammy apps. Many of them don't even offer the functionality that they promise. Most of these apps have weekly subscription fees, which is a red flag.
Identifying Scam Apps
Kleber is calling on Apple to take a stricter stance against scam apps like these to prevent users from losing money to unscrupulous developers. The following are some tips to identify these scam apps:
- Developers flooding the Mac App Store with apps that are nearly identical to confuse consumers and shut out other developers.
- Gaming the Mac App Store with keywords, misleading marketing tactics, fake reviews, stolen OpenAI logos, and multiples of the same app.
- Sketchy named and relatively new "ChatGPT" apps in the iOS and macOS App Stores that offer advanced AI-powered chatbots or language models. Most of these apps are nothing but cheap imitations or outright scams that fail to deliver on their promises.
- Scammy apps that have weekly subscription fees.
Kleber's full Medium post has more in-depth information on which apps to look out for and the lengths the developers are going to in order to trick Mac App Store users. Legitimate apps have integrated ChatGPT features, but most apps built around ChatGPT are taking advantage of App Store users who don't know better.
It's important to be cautious and take the time to research an app before purchasing it. If an app has too many reviews that seem too good to be true, it's better to avoid it. It's also essential to look for red flags like repetitive names and logos and weekly subscription fees.
Apple should take a stricter stance on scam apps like these to prevent users from losing money to unscrupulous developers. As users, we must stay vigilant while purchasing apps and be more mindful of these scams to avoid falling prey to these fake apps.
