The CMA, together with the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets and the Norwegian Consumer Authority, took action to improve the information available on the use of personal data by apps available in Apple’s App Store. Consumer protection authorities, including the CMA, became concerned that people were not being given clear information on how their personal data would be used before choosing an app, including on whether the app developer would share their personal data with a third party. Without this information, consumers are unable to compare and choose apps based on how they use personal data.

In June 2020, Apple announced a new section to each app’s product page in its App Store containing key information about the data the app collects and an accessible summary of the most important information from the privacy policy. The CMA says that these changes will come into effect for consumers shortly.

The CMA says that the changes mean that people can more easily consider privacy issues when choosing whether or not to buy and download an app. To read the CMA’s press release in full, click here.