My attempt to protect users from scam apps on the @AppStore has gotten my Apple Developer account flagged for termination - ironically, for "dishonest activity".
Unless it's reversed by June 30, all new installs of Sparrow Wallet will fail, and development on macOS will end.
The context: since 2023, more than a dozen fake "Sparrow" apps have appeared on the App Store, as recently as April this year. Users have contacted me after losing their savings, in some cases their life savings, to these impersonators.
I'm the developer of the real Sparrow Wallet, a desktop app, and I hold the registered US trademarks for the name and logo. I have publicly warned @Apple and the community about these fake apps from early 2024, but they keep appearing.
The app @Apple flagged was a placeholder that was never published. Its only purpose was to warn users that Sparrow is desktop-only and that other "Sparrow" apps aren't mine. This approach may have been misguided, but there was nothing dishonest about it.
I'm confident this is an automated misclassification that Apple would reverse on review - but I may be terminated before a human ever looks at my appeal. The cost would fall on @Apple's own users: blocked installs and no updates for a tool people rely on, which opens the door for more fakes.
If you value Sparrow, a repost would help. @AppleSupport
@leonwankum@aprycotmedia@fabthefoxx Danke, Leon! Durch dich habe ich schon vor einiger Zeit verstanden, dass ich mir ein Grundstück auf der Timechain kaufen werde. Danke für diesen mindblow damals! Dein Buch werde ich selbstverständlich auch kaufen. 🙂
“You’ll own nothing and be happy” - WEF
We’re heading toward a future where access replaces ownership
Everything will become a subscription, a rental, or permission based convenience
And it’ll be sold to us as “efficient”
The problem is when you don’t own anything, you don’t control anything
If it can be printed, taken away, frozen, restricted, or inflated
It’s not yours, you’re just borrowing it
I’m Ziya Sadr. I have been doing Bitcoin education for Iranians and Farsi speaking communities since 2017, focusing on digital access, privacy, censorship resistance, security, and mass education, all non-profit and without any financial support. Watch me speak at Oslo Freedom Forum for "Securing Lifelines" for digital access (May 2025).
Today, Iranians need internet access. I have contacts inside who can provide VPN-protected internet through Starlink spots distributed all over the country, and each Starlink can ideally support a few hundred people to keep them connected, safe, and let the word out. We need more Starlinks now. They cost ~2k USD each inside Iran due to the huge risks of possession and transferring them securely inside the country.
If you would like to help, please zap on Nostr, send sats to the Lightning address below, DM me here, or on Nostr for a Bitcoin address or any other method you prefer.
https://t.co/1ELT43D7Jt
Lightning address: [email protected]
OFF 2025 Talk link:
https://t.co/EnyVlhnY24
#IranMassacre #DigitalBlackoutIran #R2PforIran
@JimOlliver@KubickiWo Weshalb sind die Medikamente denn so teuer? Weil es keinen freien markt gibt. Wenn du Bitcoin Therapeut bist, hast du hier zu kurz gedacht... 🤨
@kaninchenbau21 Liebe Freunde des guten Geldes, es war mir ein inneres Tetris beim Space dabei gewesen zu sein. Muss morgen früh raus und bin gerne demnächst wieder dabei. 👋