Amidst Apple’s other recent updates to its App Store Review Guidelines last week, AppleInsider has discovered a section explicitly prohibiting cryptocurrency mining apps.
Tucked away in the “Hardware Compatibility” section is a prohibition on apps running “unrelated background processes” that specifically mentions cryptocurrency mining as an example, and an entirely new section, 3.1.5 (b) has been added under “3.1 Payments” specifically outlining restrictions on cryptocurrency mining apps.
Previously, the only mention of cryptocurrency in the App Store Review Guidelines was related to apps simply being “in compliance with all state and federal laws for the territories in which the app functions” which no other specific prohibitions against the practice, so Apple seems to be cracking down now, particularly in light of a few recent apps that have been revealed to be misusing or misrepresenting the features.