Pixalate Abandoned Mobile Apps Report Q3 2022: 34% (1.7MM+) of Google and Apple App Store Apps Are ‘Abandoned,’ Potentially Exposing Consumers And Advertisers To Privacy and Security Risks

Research conducted by Pixalate found that 49% of likely child-directed apps on the Apple App Store are abandoned (not updated in 2+ years) as of Q3 2022

Pixalate, the market-leading fraud protection, privacy, and compliance analytics platform for Connected TV (CTV) and Mobile Advertising, today released the Abandoned Mobile Apps Report: Q3 2022, showing that over 1.76 million apps between the Google Play Store and Apple App Store appear to have been “abandoned,” meaning that they have not been updated in over two years.

Pixalate’s analysis also found 324k+ “Super-Abandoned” apps, which means the app has gone 5+ years with no update. This is an increase of 6% quarter-over-quarter.

Abandoned apps may harbor serious privacy and security concerns, as updates often include bug fixes and security patches.

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Key Findings:

• There were 1.76M+ abandoned apps in Q3 2022, a total rise of 8% quarter-over-quarter. Apple’s number decreased (–1%) but Google’s increased (+18%).
• 21% of abandoned apps have no detected privacy policy. That figure falls to 2% for recently updated apps.
• 14k+ abandoned apps with programmatic ads accumulated $8MM+ in ad spend.
• 44% (22k+) of abandoned apps registered in Russia are abandoned, 39% (34k+) in China, and 36% (126k+) in the U.S.
• 49% of likely child-directed* apps available for download in the Apple App Store are abandoned as of Q3 2022.

Pixalate is the market-leading fraud protection, privacy, and compliance analytics platform for Connected TV (CTV) and Mobile Advertising. We work 24/7 to guard your reputation and grow your media value. Pixalate offers the only system of coordinated solutions across display, app, video, and CTV for better detection and elimination of ad fraud. Pixalate is an MRC-accredited service for the detection and filtration of sophisticated invalid traffic (SIVT) across desktop and mobile web, mobile in-app, and CTV advertising.

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