Apple cracks down on shady developers, and it might hurt Facebook

Apple is trying to make good on its promises to put its users' privacy first.

The company updated its App Store guidelines with new rules that prevent shady developers from selling personal data about your friends.

The change, which was first reported by Bloomberg, comes as part of a bigger update to Apple's developer rules, which now include a lengthier section on data use and sharing.

But the new rule that really caught people's eye was one that explicitly warns developers not to use information about contacts in order to create a "database" or sell that information to third parties. While it's common for developers to request access to a user's contacts — it's how social apps can connect you with other people you know, for example — it hasn't always been clear what happens to this data after a user grants the permission.  Read more...