Apple has faced several accusations of anti-competitive practices in several countries as investigations into the company’s dominant position continue. The United States Department of Justice is now investigating the fact that Apple forces developers to adopt the “Sign in with Apple” button if the application has other third-party login methods.
As reported by The information, researchers want to know if the “Sign in with Apple” button makes it difficult for users to migrate to another platform, such as Android or Windows. While some members of Congress praise Apple for its privacy efforts, others believe the company has abused its control over the software on its devices to harm its competitors.
Sources in the report said that some developers began filing complaints about the login button with U.S. investigators last summer. “Sign in with Apple” was introduced in 2019 as an easy and secure way to create an account on apps and websites using only one Apple ID.
However, although the use of “Sign in with Apple” in iOS and Mac applications is optional for developers, Apple forces them to use their own solution if the application already offers login via Facebook, Google or other services. Two developers told DOJ that they removed all login buttons from their applications just because they didn’t want to adopt the Apple button.
Representatives from two iPhone application developers who complained to DOJ investigators about Apple requirements told The Information that after Apple made its login button mandatory, they removed all login buttons from their application because they did not want to include the Apple and potentially lose to get information about its customers.
These developers told investigators that the Apple button isolates them from its users and claimed that it was another method the company uses to consolidate its control over its mobile devices.
Other developers believe that “Sign in with Apple” is a great resource as it is convenient for users, not to mention the privacy behind it, but at the same time, it reinforces Apple’s power over developers. An Apple spokesman declined to comment on the antitrust investigation and reiterated that the login feature guarantees the privacy of user data.
As pointed out by the report, the DOJ’s antitrust investigation against Apple is being conducted by lawyers led by Manish Kuma, who is a “longtime veteran of the agency who is head of the San Francisco antitrust unit’s office”. While there are several accusations that Apple is a monopoly, a decision on whether to sue Apple can take months or even years to define.
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