In an announcement to developers through App Store Connect last night, Apple is requiring that all new apps and updates include a link to their developer’s privacy policy in the app metadata. The new rules come into effect from October 3rd.
It seems like even if the app is a plain utility that does not connect to the internet, it must now host a website with a privacy policy page.
The App Store app listings have had a privacy policy URL metadata field for a long time. They have been mandatory for apps that use subscriptions, but now this requirement is applying to all apps in the store. Apple will not pull existing apps from sale, but any future update must ensure it has the privacy policy URL set.
