Rejection decoder › Guideline 4.8

Guideline 4.8 rejection: Login Services and Sign in with Apple

If your app offers "Continue with Google" or another third-party sign-in for the main account, Apple asks you to also offer a login option that meets its privacy conditions. In practice most apps add Sign in with Apple. The second half of the problem is making it actually work.

What Apple's message says

Paraphrased, a 4.8 message says the app uses a third-party login service but does not offer an equivalent option that limits data collection to name and email, lets users keep their email private, and does not track them for advertising without consent. Sign in with Apple meets those conditions.

There are exceptions, for example apps that use only your own company's account system, education or enterprise apps using existing accounts, and clients for a specific third-party service. Check the current guideline text before relying on one.

A related finding appears under 2.1: "Sign in with Apple is not responsive". The option is there, but the reviewer tapped it and nothing seemed to happen.

Why AI-built apps hit it

The auth templates in AI builders often include a Google button by default, and nobody adds the Apple option until review. Then:

• The Apple button is custom-drawn and hard to see. We measured one at 1.04:1 contrast against a dark background, which is effectively invisible. The official button was already in the project and used zero times.
• Sign-in succeeds, but the app decides "signed in" from a profile record that loads a moment later, so the screen stays on login until the app is relaunched.
• First-time setup logic was written when Google was the only social login, so new Apple users skip it and land in an empty app.
• The capability is missing from the App ID or the provider (Supabase, Firebase) is not configured for native Apple sign-in in the wrapped app.

How to fix it, step by step

What to reply in the Resolution Center

Fill in the brackets and delete anything you did not do. If you could only test some of this on a simulator, say what you checked and where.

Hello,

Thank you. Regarding Guideline 4.8: build [version] offers Sign in with Apple alongside [other options], using Apple's standard button. We tested it with a new Apple ID [including Hide My Email] on [devices]. After signing in, the app goes directly to [screen] without relaunching.

[If the button was hard to see: "The button now uses Apple's official white style on the dark login screen."]

Best regards,
[Your name]

Related guidelines

• Guideline 5.1.1(v): Account deletion because Sign in with Apple users also need in-app account deletion, with token revocation.
• Guideline 2.1: App completeness and Information Needed for the "not responsive" finding after sign-in.
• Guideline 5.1.2 / ITMS-91053: Privacy manifest for privacy manifest warnings from auth plugins.

Questions

Do I have to add Sign in with Apple if I have Google login?

If Google or another third-party login is used for the main account, Apple asks for an equivalent option that meets its privacy conditions, and Sign in with Apple meets them. Some apps qualify for exceptions; check the current guideline text.

Why does Apple say Sign in with Apple is not responsive?

Often sign-in worked but the app did not move to the next screen, for example because it waited for a profile that loaded later. Ask the reviewer what they saw, and test with a brand-new Apple ID.

Can I design my own Sign in with Apple button?

Apple publishes rules for the button's look. Using the official button style is the safer path; a custom button that is hard to identify can be rejected under the design guidelines.