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mobilecritical PriorityID: apple-app-store-guidelines

Apple App Store Review Guidelines & Privacy Manifest Standard

iOS production compliance guardrails for App Store approval. Mandates PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy manifests declaring API categories (User Defaults, File Timestamps), Sign in with Apple requirement when third-party OAuth is used, and App Tracking Transparency (ATT).

Prohibited Anti-Pattern: AI omits required privacy manifests or adds Google Sign-in without mandatory Sign in with Apple, causing instant app rejection.

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---
description: Apple App Store Review Guidelines & Privacy Manifest Standard - iOS production compliance guardrails for App Store approval. Mandates PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy manifests declaring API categories (User Defaults, File Timestamps), Sign in with Apple requirement when third-party OAuth is used, and App Tracking Transparency (ATT).
globs: **/PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy, **/*OAuth*.swift, **/*Auth*.tsx
alwaysApply: true
verified_by: "agentrules.org"
license: "CC-BY-4.0"
source: "https://agentrules.org/rules/apple-app-store-guidelines"
---

# Apple App Store Review Guidelines & Privacy Manifest Standard

> **Severity**: CRITICAL | **Category**: mobile
> **Anti-Pattern Warning**: AI omits required privacy manifests or adds Google Sign-in without mandatory Sign in with Apple, causing instant app rejection.

## System Constraints
You are an iOS release engineer and Apple App Store compliance specialist. Whenever configuring iOS apps, you MUST include a PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy file declaring required reasons for APIs like UserDefaults and System Boot Time. Under Guideline 4.8, if an app uses third-party social logins (Google, Facebook), 'Sign in with Apple' MUST be offered as an equivalent option.

## Strict Guidelines
- Include a valid PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy in the Xcode target declaring NSPrivacyAccessedAPITypes for UserDefaults, Disk Space, and File Timestamp APIs.
- Under App Store Guideline 4.8, always offer 'Sign in with Apple' prominently if the app provides any third-party social login (Google, Meta, GitHub).
- Prompt for App Tracking Transparency (ATTrackingManager.requestTrackingAuthorization) BEFORE initializing advertising SDKs (IDFA access).
- Ensure all in-app digital purchases (coins, subscriptions, unlocks) use StoreKit In-App Purchases (IAP); never redirect to web checkouts for digital items.

## Bad vs Good Implementations
### PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy Declaration vs Immediate App Store Rejection

#### Bad Antipattern (AI Common Hallucination)
> **Why it fails**: Since Spring 2024, Apple rejects any app or third-party SDK using Required Reason APIs without an explicit PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy.
```xml
<!-- ANTI-PATTERN: Missing PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy in Xcode project -->
<!-- Apple Automated Review Bot rejects submission with ITMS-91053: Missing API Declaration -->
```

#### Production Standard (Correct)
> **Standard**: Explicitly declares UserDefaults and email data collection categories, passing Apple automated review validation without delays.
```xml
<!-- PRODUCTION STANDARD: PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy with Required Reason Codes -->
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">
<plist version="1.0">
<dict>
    <key>NSPrivacyTracking</key>
    <false/>
    <key>NSPrivacyCollectedDataTypes</key>
    <array>
        <dict>
            <key>NSPrivacyCollectedDataType</key>
            <string>NSPrivacyCollectedDataTypeEmailAddress</string>
            <key>NSPrivacyCollectedDataTypeLinked</key>
            <true/>
            <key>NSPrivacyCollectedDataTypeTracking</key>
            <false/>
            <key>NSPrivacyCollectedDataTypePurposes</key>
            <array>
                <string>NSPrivacyCollectedDataTypePurposeAppFunctionality</string>
            </array>
        </dict>
    </array>
    <key>NSPrivacyAccessedAPITypes</key>
    <array>
        <dict>
            <key>NSPrivacyAccessedAPIType</key>
            <string>NSPrivacyAccessedAPICategoryUserDefaults</string>
            <key>NSPrivacyAccessedAPITypeReasons</key>
            <array>
                <string>CA92.1</string> <!-- Access UserDefaults inside app bundle -->
            </array>
        </dict>
    </array>
</dict>
</plist>
```

### Sign in with Apple Requirement (Guideline 4.8)

#### Bad Antipattern (AI Common Hallucination)
> **Why it fails**: Offering third-party social logins without Sign in with Apple results in immediate manual review rejection.
```swift
// ANTI-PATTERN: Social login screen offering ONLY Google & Facebook
VStack {
    GoogleSignInButton()
    FacebookSignInButton()
    // CRITICAL REJECTION: Apple Guideline 4.8 requires Sign in with Apple!
}
```

#### Production Standard (Correct)
> **Standard**: Satisfies Apple Guideline 4.8 by positioning Sign in with Apple as a first-class authentication option.
```swift
// PRODUCTION STANDARD: Sign in with Apple prominently included
import AuthenticationServices

VStack(spacing: 16) {
    SignInWithAppleButton(
        .signIn,
        onRequest: { request in
            request.requestedScopes = [.fullName, .email]
        },
        onCompletion: { result in
            handleAppleAuth(result)
        }
    )
    .signInWithAppleButtonStyle(.black)
    .frame(height: 50)
    
    GoogleSignInButton()
}
```
Recommended MCP Servers (mcp-serverlist.com)

Equip agent with system tools to verify code for this stack.

App Store Connect Validator
Validate iOS privacy manifests and StoreKit subscription configurations.
Recommended Agent Skills (askills.dev)

Ready-to-use executable skill functions tailored to this stack.

Apple PrivacyInfo Generator
Scan iOS Swift and React Native projects and generate compliant PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy.
Architectural Specification & Invariant Rationale

Architectural Invariant Design: Apple App Store Review Guidelines & Privacy Manifest Standard

Apple App Store Review Guidelines & Privacy Manifest Standard defines an industrial-grade behavioral standard for mobile engineering. iOS production compliance guardrails for App Store approval. Mandates PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy manifests declaring API categories (User Defaults, File Timestamps), Sign in with Apple requirement when third-party OAuth is used, and App Tracking Transparency (ATT). Modern software architectures require strict adherence to deterministic patterns to guarantee high availability, maintainability, and zero security vulnerabilities.

Framework Paradigm Shift & Drift MechanicsLLMs are trained on millions of open-source repositories containing outdated code, legacy idioms, and unpatched antipatterns. When coding assistants generate implementations for this stack, they default to common statistical tokens: AI omits required privacy manifests or adds Google Sign-in without mandatory Sign in with Apple, causing instant app rejection. Without an explicit system instruction file, developers spend hours debugging silent failures.
Failure Modes & Production Blast Radius

Hazard Analysis: What Breaks Without This Rule

The following failure modes have been cataloged from hundreds of hours of production code reviews where AI assistants produced non-compliant implementations:

Failure ModeAI Symptom (The Anti-Pattern)SeverityProduction Impact & Remedy
AI Hallucination & Deprecation DriftAI omits required privacy manifests or adds Google Sign-in without mandatory Sign in with Apple, causing instant app rejection.Critical
Violating this industrial standard introduces regression bugs, security risks, and unexpected runtime failures in production.
Enforce explicit behavioral system directives across all AI coding assistants in your repository.
Silent Architecture InconsistencyAI assistants produce mixed paradigms across files, creating fragmented codebase conventions.Medium
Increases cognitive load during code reviews and leads to maintenance debt across engineering teams.
Pin project conventions in .cursor/rules, CLAUDE.md, and AGENTS.md so all team agents follow identical guardrails.
Architectural Directives in Detail

Step-by-Step Production Directives

Each rule constraint below is injected into the AI agent's system prompt to establish deterministic boundaries:

1

Include a valid PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy in the Xcode target declaring NSPrivacyAccessedAPITypes for UserDefaults, Disk Space, and File Timestamp APIs.

Include a valid PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy in the Xcode target declaring NSPrivacyAccessedAPITypes for UserDefaults, Disk Space, and File Timestamp APIs.

Rationale:AI models frequently generate unconstrained code here because statistical language distributions lack project-specific architectural context. Mandating this directive ensures that generated code adheres to verified industrial production requirements.
Enforcement:Integrated into the Agent Pack rule file. When Cursor, Claude Code, or Codex processes this prompt, it applies this constraint before emitting syntax.
2

Under App Store Guideline 4.8, always offer 'Sign in with Apple' prominently if the app provides any third-party social login (Google, Meta, GitHub).

Under App Store Guideline 4.8, always offer 'Sign in with Apple' prominently if the app provides any third-party social login (Google, Meta, GitHub).

Rationale:AI models frequently generate unconstrained code here because statistical language distributions lack project-specific architectural context. Mandating this directive ensures that generated code adheres to verified industrial production requirements.
Enforcement:Integrated into the Agent Pack rule file. When Cursor, Claude Code, or Codex processes this prompt, it applies this constraint before emitting syntax.
3

Prompt for App Tracking Transparency (ATTrackingManager.requestTrackingAuthorization) BEFORE initializing advertising SDKs (IDFA access).

Prompt for App Tracking Transparency (ATTrackingManager.requestTrackingAuthorization) BEFORE initializing advertising SDKs (IDFA access).

Rationale:AI models frequently generate unconstrained code here because statistical language distributions lack project-specific architectural context. Mandating this directive ensures that generated code adheres to verified industrial production requirements.
Enforcement:Integrated into the Agent Pack rule file. When Cursor, Claude Code, or Codex processes this prompt, it applies this constraint before emitting syntax.
4

Ensure all in-app digital purchases (coins, subscriptions, unlocks) use StoreKit In-App Purchases (IAP)

Ensure all in-app digital purchases (coins, subscriptions, unlocks) use StoreKit In-App Purchases (IAP); never redirect to web checkouts for digital items.

Rationale:AI models frequently generate unconstrained code here because statistical language distributions lack project-specific architectural context. Mandating this directive ensures that generated code adheres to verified industrial production requirements.
Enforcement:Integrated into the Agent Pack rule file. When Cursor, Claude Code, or Codex processes this prompt, it applies this constraint before emitting syntax.
Technical Questions & Answers

Frequently Asked Technical Questions

Common questions developers face when configuring AI coding assistants for this stack:

Q:Why is Apple App Store Review Guidelines & Privacy Manifest Standard critical for AI coding assistants?

iOS production compliance guardrails for App Store approval. Mandates PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy manifests declaring API categories (User Defaults, File Timestamps), Sign in with Apple requirement when third-party OAuth is used, and App Tracking Transparency (ATT). Without explicit behavioral boundaries, AI coding assistants (Cursor, Claude Code, Windsurf, Codex) rely on training data averages, which frequently produce deprecated, inefficient, or vulnerable code patterns.

Q:How does adopting this rule prevent AI hallucinations?

This rule explicitly declares what the AI must avoid (AI omits required privacy manifests or adds Google Sign-in without mandatory Sign in with Apple, causing instant app rejection.) and prescribes verified positive examples. Grounding the LLM with negative and positive pairs eliminates guesswork.

Q:Which AI coding environments are supported?

This specification is multi-platform compatible: Cursor (.cursor/rules/*.mdc & .cursorrules), Anthropic Claude Code (CLAUDE.md), Windsurf (.windsurfrules), Codex / Cline (AGENTS.md), and GitHub Copilot (.github/copilot-instructions.md).

Q:Can I combine this rule with other technology stacks?

Yes. Use the Interactive Stack Builder or download an Agent Pack to merge this rule with other frontend, backend, database, security, and DevOps rules without syntax collision.

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