APPLE has revised its App Store Review Guidelines to expand the assortment of apps that may be removed without prior notice, with a particular focus on platforms that enable fortuitous or anonymous interactions, notably those offering randomized chat experiences. In the safety section, Apple highlights user-generated content and the challenges around intellectual property, anonymous harassment, and other harms.
To mitigate these risks, the guidelines require stringent reporting mechanisms and sophisticated content filtering for such platforms. The policy, according to 9to5mac, states that apps with user-generated content or services used predominantly for pornographic content, Chatroulette-style experiences, random or anonymous chat, objectification of real people, making physical threats, or bullying may be removed without notice.
While Apple has not disclosed a precise catalyst, regulators have pressured the company; in 2025 the eSafety Commissioner released a report asserting that anonymous randomized chat apps expose minors to significant peril and prompting action that saw OmeTV purged from Apple and Google stores.
These Chatroulette-style apps are often described as random video chat services and are linked to incidents of intimidation and cyberbullying, underpinning Apple’s stance as part of a broader effort to protect minors’ digital well-being.