Is Google Sunsetting Gmail In 2024? New Hoax Leaves Users Confused

 Rumors are going strong on social media about Google’s journey with Gmail coming to an end. And that too as early as this year.

If you paid witness to such a shocking hoax that’s fast spreading online too then we can confirm that it’s not true by any means. The Android maker is addressing the need for users to calm down after the hoax emphasizing the company’s goodbye to Gmail.

Many versions of this hoax can be found online on the Twitter (X) app. But Google has rest assured everyone to take it easy and that it’s not going anywhere. However, a clause also mentions how users would now be defaulted to new views on Gmail. So other than those cases where you had specifically requested for the basic HTML version, nothing is going to change.

The search engine giant just made updates to its respective support page too instead of this hoax and how it will now change to Standard display after the issuance of a deadline date.

Reports by users on tech outlet Hacker News mentioned how they got emails from the company that signaled the feature was now coming to a close and that obviously created a state of panic across the board.

Screenshots: DIW - Gmail web

Google says it wants to make it very clear about where its Gmail stands right now to avoid last-minute panic. Users can expect to see their mobile and desktop web Gmail Basic HTML views getting disabled from the start of January this year. The basic HTML views on display right now are from old variants of Gmail that had been replaced by modern versions close to a decade ago. They don’t entail complete Gmail features.

Today, when users make the effort to access HTML variants, the company rolls out messages stating how the variant is designed for slower connectivity and those having legacy browsers. Therefore, it’s now asking users to confirm whether or not they want to make use of standard variants or not.

The latest HTML variant has a few new features like chat, grammar checks, shortcuts for the keyboard, and any kind of rich formatting tools. But we can see how it will serve as something super useful in those scenarios where you happen to be in an area with low connections.

The same would be the case if users wish to look at emails without having more bells and whistles attached. For now, it’s still not clear if Google wishes to add a new variant for situations where there is low connectivity.

For the time being, the search engine giant is focusing more on the likes of adding AI-based technology to a wide array of its offerings. And Gmail seems to be a part of that list. In the past month, we saw the company roll out Duet AI features to assist users in generating emails when in a rush.

Meanwhile, last week, we saw it giving Bard the chance to incorporate several Google accounts so queries can be asked regarding email history.

200,000 Private Records From Facebook’s User Database Stolen, Hackers Forum Confirms

 A hacker has just raised the alarm amongst Facebook users after confirming that 200,000 personal data record entries were reportedly stolen from the firm’s database.

The news is alarming for obvious reasons as the claims further went on to delineate how the cybercriminal dubbed ‘alogoatson breached contractors’ efforts that are in charge of Facebook’s cloud services. They stole part of the user database that featured a significant number of entries.

The information was rolled out by a leading threat actor dubbed ‘IntelBroker’ which is notorious for a long list of leaks that entailed data stolen through General Electric and a long list of high-profile attacks taking place.

This sample entails lists featuring full names, profile image links, and hashed passwords. Other than that, profile ratings, settings, and plenty of reviews were on display.

The hacker explained how the data that was compromised included the likes of Physical IDs.

This database was first rolled out in February and has close to 24k email IDs and a host of other compromised information. Media outlets tried to request tech giant Meta for more comments on this front but there is no response so far.

This is clearly not the first time that we’ve seen such measures take center stage where a firm like Facebook has become the center of attention in a long list of data leaks. We saw in 2022 how a database from the same tech giant featuring data records of close to 533 million users on Facebook went public online without any additional costs attached.

For a while now, the company has been slammed for enabling third parties to gather data belonging to users as was seen in the high-profile and infamous Cambridge Analytica scandal.

The danger is massive and cannot be ignored because it involves a large number of private data getting leaked that could potentially impact the lives of millions. So as you can see here, there’s a lot at stake.

So many threat actors managed to collect data for matters like phishing attacks, malicious attempts, and convincing attacks against a host of individuals where data was exposed.

Media outlets continues to update the top-of-the-line data leak checker to entail data arising from several different leaks. For this reason, warnings are generated so users continue to remain vigilant at all times and ensure top-level privacy and security with passwords that are not easy to break into.

Photo: Digital Information World - AIgen

H/T: Bleepingcomputer / Cybernews

TikTok Unveils Global Measures for 2024 Election Integrity, Including Dedicated Centers and Fact-Checker Collaborations

 Social media giant TikTok is sharing a series of updates linked to election integrity. This includes how it plans on controlling the spread of misinformation across the platform which has soon transformed into a major weapon in recent polls arising around the globe.

As per a statement released by the social media giant recently, close to two billion individuals in more than 50 different nations are set to enter polls in 2024. And they boasted about how they’ve been countering the unlawful acts for the past four years and are more experienced now than ever to tackle this year’s election wave too.

Sharing overviews of their continued investments means saying hello to a safe and creative environment where historic election results are set to arise.

For starters, the company plans to roll out a dedicated election center for every major poll out there today. This will highlight plenty of critical data from a host of trusted providers and assist in dispelling fake reports from all over the globe.

TikTok mentioned how it’s going to collaborate alongside electoral commissions as well as various fact-checkers to ensure nothing goes unnoticed. They hope to create election hubs that display the right facts to those wishing to vote in 2024.

Last year, the app stated how election centers had a reach of over 55 million individuals and shortly, it’s collaborating with Democracy Works. This Center is going to give close to 150 million community members in the US that have reliable voting data for all to benefit from in Washington DC and beyond.

For so long, the app has been facing lenty of scrutiny in terms of officials calling it out to do more. They are a leading source of information for the youth and beyond, so any kind of misinformation would result in a level of bias for the upcoming election results, experts mentioned.

It’s a serious matter to be worried about. And while the app’s executives are doing everything in their power to reassure the world that a lot of safeguards and protocols are in place, nothing can ever be confirmed. Remember, the elections arising are a huge deal and with AI in full bloom, there’s no better way to test tech giants’ operations and features regarding combatting misinformation spread than right now.

The idea surrounding all of this is simple. It’s to give rise to a specific setting to provide users with the most authentic information arising in real-time. It hopes to direct them to the right election centers too through prompts on certain election content as well as searches.

As far as fact-checkers are concerned, it has to do with the app partnering up with the right institutions to provide engaging media campaigns regarding misinformation and highlighting AI content and beyond. In case you were not aware, the latter is set to turn into the most concerning endeavor of 2024 as not a lot of people will know about the effect that generative AI tools can have over the election period.

Meta Unveils New ‘Nighttime Nudges’ For Instagram So Teens Log Off During Late Hours

 It’s no surprise that tech giant Meta has been scrutinized in the past and continues to face major criticism for its apps in terms of the safety they offer to minors.

Plenty of research and bombshell documents have called out Facebook’s parent firm and how it needs to be doing more than rolling out a limited set of tools to combat the issue.

Keeping this in mind, Meta has just unveiled a new feature for Instagram users that prevents teens from using the app excessively at late-night timings.

The rollout comprises a feature called nudges where teens would be prompted to log off when they hit curfew hours. And what better source of reminder or alert than this, right?

The alert will be displayed whenever a minor uses the app for more than ten minutes in a particular area like Instagram Reels or Instagram DMs during odd times at night.

The company mentioned through a newsroom post how the goal was to generate a tool because nothing is more important than sleep, especially when it comes to the younger generation.

Image: Meta

The alerts are rolled out during the night hours and present as the newest offering by Meta’s parental control suite. So we first heard about this last year in June and how it was rolling out such features to assist parents in terms of managing kids’ screen times as well as the activity carried out on the apps. Moreover, the firm has also been seen slowly rolling out a host of other tools in the past couple of months.

The tech giant mentioned last week how the goal was to keep better tabs on what was being shown to minors on Facebook as well as the Instagram platform. Such settings ensure there will be a decreased level of sensitive content that children are exposed to through the platform.

• Also read: Alarming New Study Exposes Facebook’s Intrusive Monitoring Of Users’ Online Activities

The leading tech giant has been facing a lot of criticism in the recent past over how its offerings keep affecting the minds of youngsters. It was slammed with all sorts of lawsuits from a host of state attorneys in general and the overall lack of safeguards in place for youngsters.

Meanwhile, one bipartisan group featuring 33 attorney generals mentioned how the goal was to sue the firm when it proved that the company was targeting minors by marketing addictive offerings. The lawsuit arising in December spoke about New Mexico springing into action when its regulators showed how the apps were breeding grounds for abuse of young minds and that was totally unacceptable.

In the past, Meta has tried long and hard in terms of showing how hard it has worked to curb such issues through the launch of nearly 30 tools and a host of different resources to provide support for both children and parents. The goal was to make sure only safe experiences were taking place on these apps.

TikTok Faces Mega Lawsuit For Misleading Age Labels Across App Stores

 Social media giant TikTok is currently under scrutiny from Iowa’s Attorney General who accused the company of putting out apps with misleading age labeling.

The lawsuit was rolled out in the firm’s direction which spoke about how the platform exposed minors to all sorts of explicit material linked to suggestive themes, alcohol, drugs, and more explicit findings.

In the same way, prosecutors added how such acts are misleading parents too because it keeps them in the dark in terms of how their kids are exposed to so much yet they are unaware of it. From abuse and self-harm to sexually themed material, it’s getting worse with time, they added. More light was also shed on how the company sneaked past all types of parental blocks by misrepresenting the degree of the content on display.

TikTok mentioned how it’s a suitable app for all kinds of audiences that are above the age of 12. While the platform did claim it was a platform for those above the age of 12, the material on display was more for those who were 17 and above and that’s so shocking.

Those that do have the 12+ labeling for age groups on them must be accessed by those above the age of 17. So such a filing argued that TikTok’s right age rating would be 17 years and above.

Apps having 12+ ratings on them were classified as featuring inappropriate content to a lesser degree. But he also mentioned how TikTok’s content was not accessible easily.

The massive court filing also goes on to speak about how the app is rated incorrectly across the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store. And even in Microsoft’s STore where there is a T rating for Teens that isn’t right.

More shocking investigations into the company proved how the app is offering recipes for self-harm, drugs, alcohol, profanity, and beyond. It’s just wrong to see such unlawful acts get markets by the leading company’s algorithm. And that’s especially true because of how popular it is for those who are categorized as the youth.

Seeing the app’s own Restricted Mode falling short of things like stopping content from getting available online to younger audiences is another alarming endeavor altogether.

Therefore, the whole purpose of the lawsuit was to stop the leading app from being deemed suitable for the youth while penalizing it for actions so that it and others steer clear of this kind of behavior in the future.

• Explore more: AI-Produced Content Is Being Marketed Across Google News And The Company Is Aware Of It

So we’re expecting to see a host of legal charges and penalties take center stage. As far as content on the app is concerned, there are all types of themes being promoted. But if kids are going to be exposed to harmful dealings, then it’s not going to be tolerated. And if the app denies it, stating that the themes in question are mild and infrequent, then that again is a huge lie, not to mention a misrepresentation of what the reality is.

But TikTok is not backing down. It refused to accept all of the allegations, boldly claiming that it was working hard to curb such matters to begin with. They have industry-leading safeguards in place to protect minors at all costs. This includes parental controls as well as time restrictions that are working for those below the age of 18. Similarly, they are committed to ensuring community safety as their top priority.

In case you’re wondering, this is not the first time that the tech giant has been called out. Many also have concerns about data sharing with those in China, especially US lawmakers who have blasted the app in this regard.

Photo: Digital Information World - AIgen

WhatsApp Grew by 9% in 2023, But Is That Enough to Surpass iMessage?

 When it comes to instant messaging, there are only two major players in the game with all things having been considered and taken into account. The first is iMessage, which has a strong grip on the market due to the iPhone’s universal popularity in the US, and the other is the Meta owned WhatsApp. Apple’s messaging app clearly has a lead, but in spite of the fact that this is the case, WhatsApp has been making considerable ground as of late.

With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that WhatsApp’s daily active users in America grew by 9% in 2023. Its downloads also increased by 5% year over year, and it should be acknowledged that iPhone users are becoming especially amenable to giving it a try. Does this mean that WhatsApp might soon overtake iMessage in the future?

Chart: Apptopia

While Apple is quick to boast about iMessage being the very best messaging platform, it’s not available to Android users. That can be limiting because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up preventing people talking to each other if they don’t have the same operating system on their phones.

On top of all of that, iMessage doesn’t really offer the same support for group chats as WhatsApp, where you can create groups of up to 1,024 users. What's more is that long texts are harder to send through iMessage, and messages containing media are largely restricted as well.

WhatsApp offers certain valuable features along with being compatible with both iOS and Android. This might give it the edge it needs to surpass its competitor, and its business solutions are yet another example of its unique appeal. WhatsApp for Business saw daily active users increase by 80% in 2023.

At the same time, Apple is set to introduce RCS support for iOS, which might make it considerably easier for Android and iOS users to text than might have been the case otherwise. This will be the ultimate test to determine which app will win out in the end.

Whatsapp is improving its preexisting features with its newest update

 Whatsapp is now working on launching two new versions of preexisting features including the online status and the camera feature, reports WBI.

Whatsapp has changed the placement of the camera from the community tab to somewhere more accessible. This new feature came forward only recently and is available for only Beta users. It is still under development so we do not know when it will be out for all of its users however we believe it will be a part of the next update.

The app is also going to have a major change in the camera button settings. Users will now have separate buttons for photos and videos. In the current version, there is only a single button that users need to press and hold to record videos. However, in the new update, users will have a video button on the left and a photo button on the right.

Along with this, Whatsapp is also finally fixing the bug that has annoyed thousands of Whatsapp by now. Have you ever scrolled through a chat and landed on a very old conversation instead? This was happening to thousands of users and regardless of complaints, Whatsapp was not addressing the issue. However, with the announcement of its latest update, Whatsapp also promised to fix this particular issue.

Whatsapp has also been giving time to our favorite feature, the ability to control who can see you online. This feature was already out for some Beta users, however, Whatsapp is now rolling this out to even more users. Hopefully, it will reach us soon as well!

The feature works peculiarly. Whatsapp gives users options to choose who can see their last seen. This includes everyone, no one, contacts, and all contacts except the selected individuals. The new option to choose who you're shown online works the same way. It gives you the option to choose between nobody and the same as last seen.

To check whether you are one of the lucky ones who have been blessed with this feature, check your privacy settings in this instance! If you can't find it, unfortunately, you will have to wait for the next update.

We are really happy with Whatsapp's updates this time around and hope to see similar ones shortly as well.

TikTok Announces Major Updates Including A Dislike Button And Bigger Video Descriptions

 TikTok is on a roll recently as the popular video-making app was seen launching an array of new updates for users.

For starters, the app has spoken about the launch of a new dislike button. This has been rolled out for viewers worldwide and will certainly outline any irrelevant comments witnessed across the app.

So you can find this feature in the Comments section and while we first heard about the feature way back in April of this year, it’s great to be seeing it being rolled out now. The idea is to promote kindness on the app, claim experts.

See, the whole initiative is to identify comments that are not only irrelevant but inappropriate. In this way, users can better provide their feedback on a topic and also make the comments section better.

After a user opts to dislike the comment, only they will be the ones getting the notification on their app. So that means others like the owner of the content and the other audience members won’t be notified. Hence, there won’t be any feeling of hatred promoted in the community with this feature. Similarly, creators don’t need to feel demoralized in case they're at the receiving end.

Anyone that wishes to undo their own ‘dislike’ action can do so and so that makes it very similar to dislikes seen on other apps. TikTok has been working on this feature for a while now and it’s great to see the news go public, thanks to social media expert Matt Navarra, who first spotted it. But remember, you can see the total number of dislikes received as no total count is made visible on the post.

Next up, the app reveals they’re increasing the length of video descriptions. TikTok says the whole idea is to better optimize the content of creators as it’s a great opportunity to do so when users are searching.

And we’d just like to inform you of the news, thanks to Matt Navarra that the increase isn’t small. It’s major and by that, we mean an increase of up to 2200 characters! Before it stood at just 300 so as you can see, it’s a mega change.

Other than the fact that it’s going to be easier to search, the app says it also uses the text written to determine which video content it would like to recommend to its users. As Matt Navarra revealed, this is some major news for content creators on the app and could pave the way for TikTok to be more inclined toward transforming into a search engine. After all, what’s better than searching for your videos in the most user-friendly way right?

The change was first spoken about in June and now, the release has begun. So if you’re a content creator that’s looking for better engagement, be sure to add some more keywords like your city or state name so others can relate and give it a view.

Last but not least, the app has launched another exciting feature that allows creators to go live with more guests during their live stream. It’s an innovative multi-guest feature that many will adore.

TikTok is adding a new five-guest limit and each one gets their own separate box so they can attend to the invite and join immediately.

WhatsApp Announces New Update For Android Users, Leaves Them In Awe

 Recently, the social media giant WhatsApp hinted at some updates that left its users in complete excitement.

In the following update, WhatsApp is all set to release the new version where android users would be able to link an android tablet to their existing WhatsApp accounts based on different devices.

This update is named companion mode - tablet support, which is currently available for some beta testers. According to WaBetaInfo, it will be compatible with Android devices 2.22.21.5 and 2.22.21.6.

As per the leaker, the following feature is still under development and will be available soon to android users. Through this update, the users can link their WhatsApp accounts to any secondary device, whether an Android tab or a TV.

Currently, WhatsApp has over 2 billion users. The companion mode feature can be helpful to the company as it has the potential to make its user smart enough. With the following update, the users can simultaneously use Whatsapp on up to 4 devices. They can scan the QR code, and their chats will appear anywhere.

To scan the QR code, the user has to open the WhatsApp settings, link devices, and scan the QR code to link the chats to other secondary devices.

To add more, once a user has synced the chats, he can use WhatsApp on the linked device, whether it's an Android tab or an Apple iPhone. Also, the user can use WhatsApp without an active internet connection as the chats mainly sync to the primary device.

Besides this, as per WBI report, the update is still under consideration, as several changes are due, as now it is only available to a few beta testers. According to the report, advanced features like catching live location on a companion device, better IDE, and a support system aren't still available in this update.

The following update can be a massive turn-around in the history of WhatsApp updates because users would be able to connect and simultaneously use the application on up to 4 devices.

The development team has kept their hopes high for future challenges as they seek further improvements and addition to this feature. From a better supportive environment to a better and upgraded version, WhatsApp is excited to amaze its users too often in the future.

TikTok Takes Inspiration From BeReal And Launches Experimental ‘Now’ Feature

It appears as if Instagram is not the only one to hop onto the daily image-sharing trend. And that’s because we’ve got more news about TikTok taking inspiration from BeReal and launching a new experiment.

The feature will ask users to put up a new image through any of their cameras. The other option is to put up a 10-second video to inform friends about your daily chores or routine. All users are going to get a very small and discreet window to share their details after getting the randomly-timed prompt.

You can look at it as your next update regarding visual status.

This new test is designed to take place over the next few weeks, as confirmed by the app this week. Moreover, it’s going to be available via the usual American app. However, you just might find it your next favorite dedicated app across different nations.

What isn’t surprising is how quite a few features are very limited for teenagers Therefore, anyone seen on the app that’s between the age group 13 to 15 will get comments from their close pals. Meanwhile, until you’re 18, you won’t be given a chance to share content through Explore.

We won’t lie; the news is definitely a very interesting one. After all, archrivals for the popular short video app are often seen taking inspiration from TikTok. Now, the roles appear to be reversed, and it’s thrilling to see.

We definitely see why the app has chosen to go down this path. Taking on BeReal’s core concept means putting up daily posts, and that will have users returning to the app for more content. What more can a platform want?

Similarly, you get the chance to value your social circle and friends more with this idea called Now. Who knows, it might turn out to be a massive game-changer for the platform.

Snapchat For Web Is Finally Out For Users Worldwide

Snap fans are going to fall in love with this next piece of news.

Snapchat for the web is out for different users worldwide. And while it may have been a long time coming, considering the high anticipation involved, it’s time for the app’s fans to celebrate.

The app’s features related to video chats and standard messaging were made available to different browsers in July of this year. But the launch was restricted to a selected few, such as a limited part of the market or those with a paid subscription.

But things are changing for the better, and the feature is up for grabs to those avid users that adore typing or have a bucketload of texts to send out. After all, there’s a much bigger screen involved, not to mention complete access to a whole keyboard too.

While the company says the interface for the web is straight and to the point, you may also utilize it to send images. Did we mention the feasibility of making both video and audio calls?

One of the app’s spokespersons mentioned that many people had loved the video call functionality in recent times. And that fact that it’s being available on the web, too, will be loved more. Just think about video calls of longer duration.

Meanwhile, the spokesperson added that several other core features may arise on the web too. It all depends on how things go and what demands come forward from users.

But that’s not the only happening launch on the app. Snap has recently released its series of widgets for lock screens. This is solely restricted to the iPhone for now. This is right after the company unveiled its iOS 16 for users.

With this new launch, you can create shortcuts for chats you’d like or for those conversations made with those you adore more. Using a single tap firing up your conversations has never been easier than now.

Since we’re still on the subject of shortcuts, we’d also like to inform you that the app will soon entail some more shortcuts located at the topmost part of the chat page.

This is designed to add further convenience so you can now get to your unread Snaps, conversations, or your replies instantly. You’ll be given reminders for other special occasions like birthdays or chats you are yet to open.

Lastly, the app has introduced the Question Sticker feature. You can put them on stories or any choice of Snaps.


In terms of the rollout of these new features, they’ll be coming your way soon.

Most Instagram Reels Users Don’t Receive Any Engagement At All, Says New Internal Report

 For a while now, Instagram spoke about how keen it was on competing with its fellow archrival TikTok. And they planned on doing just that through the introduction of short video content such as Reels.

But a new internal report that has been critiqued by WSJ says Reels isn't standing where the tech giant had envisioned it to be. To put it simply, it’s just lagging far behind all forms of competition.

The document went on to detail how most Reels' users on the app are failing to get any engagement. Seeing the news of the platform falling flat on the ground is generally concerning for Meta and the experts feel it’s got a long way to go if it plans on affecting TikTok’s share of the competitive market.

On average, the document went on to prove how out of 11 million content creators that use the app, only 21% are involved in putting up Reels on a monthly basis. And out of those, there has been zero to no engagement at all.

The report that is titled Creators x Reels State of the Union, also proved how TikTok users as a whole tend to spend 197.8 million hours witnessing content on the app daily. On the other hand, users on Instagram are spending nearly one-tenth of that amount, which is about 17 million hours daily.

But seeing this report published really had Meta in a bad mood. The company’s spokesperson was quick to call the report an outdated feature that not only featured incorrect information but also was designed to paint a fake narrative of what the progress for Reels has turned out to be.

Although Meta did admit that it’s got plenty of work to do still on its Reels, it was happy with the progress so far. They also elaborated how promising results are up for grabs while monetization across the platform is also seeing new growth at a faster pace.

Meta concluded by highlighting how more and more people are connecting, watching, and engaging with Reels than what the firm saw previously.

But the reports say otherwise. It claims that the biggest reason why the Reel content is failing on the platform has to do with how there is so much non-original content. Moreover, stats proved how most videos seen have been posted on other apps and then shared on Instagram too. And that causes a general loss of interest from the users’ point of view. After all, who wants to see repetitive content?

One way that the report says you can find recycled videos is by searching for a watermark that can be spotted immediately. And while the firm does try its best to downrank such repetitive content on the app, they do somehow pass the barriers and make its way forward.

The Meta spokesperson says that recycled videos are also not recommended on the app because so many viewers have told them that they’re not a fan of seeing old Reels. Instead, they would much rather prefer to see new and unique content that’s solely designed for the platform. And it makes sense because it’s just so much more inspiring and even entertaining.

The timing of this report is rather unique. It arises shortly after one of the app’s attempts to display more video content on the platform failed miserably.

A lot of celebs and the majority of users on the app protested against the idea of testing full-screen displays of Instagram. Similarly, they weren’t in favor of Facebook’s algorithm being like TikTok’s.

So as you can see, Instagram has been through a lot in recent times and this report isn’t comforting either.

How Many Top Apps Make Use Of Apple Search Ads? The Findings Of This Study May Surprise You

 In the past year, Search Ads from tech giant Apple have turned into an increasingly popular venture. You’ll be amazed to learn how so many huge firms have set aside giant budgets that ensure the right spending takes place on the App Store.

And then we had the app tracking transparency from WhatsApp come forward, which really helped a lot.

But how many leading iOS apps actually make use of search ads? Well, a new App Intelligence study by AF used state-of-the-art suite tools to find the answer. And according to that analysis, the results are surprising.

To keep it short and sweet, the answer is a lot! The top 100 biggest earning applications were analyzed in each subject on the App store. They were then ranked according to the number of apps they were running through Search Ads.

And that’s when they found out that 61% of top iOS apps ran Apple’s search ads, wow!

As far as categories are concerned, well, it’s education that people appear to show the greatest investments upon. Nearly 70% of those earning the most revenue were related to this niche. It couldn’t make more sense than this, considering the timing at the moment.

Remember, it’s back-to-school season and such applications are definitely in popular demand.

But closely following that niche comes the world of health and fitness. You’d be amazed at how so many people are willing to get back on track with their health and are turning to apps to do just that.

Other commonly inquired-about categories included the world of business, music, graphics, design, games, and even navigation. But what exactly do these stats mean? Does it actually hint that apps use search ads from Apple if they wish to make money across the App Store? Perhaps you’re wondering such leading apps use the money they generate to spend on getting Search Ads.

Well, the answer is that both these scenarios take place. Some of the applications continue to be in demand thanks to the company’s Search Ads. Meanwhile, so many famous apps continue to use ads so they can compete with other archrivals in the industry.

This is definitely defining the real purpose of such ads. It’s much better when they happen to be located in the search results too.

For a while now, we saw the leading iPhone maker have their leg up against all other ad networks, thanks to these ad placements. They managed to serve their intended audiences perfectly.

And since advertisers actually don’t end up gaining access to many of its features, well, we know the company has plenty of hidden tricks up its sleeve that it fails to show publicly. But we do hope to see them arise in the near future.

The reason for this behavior could be simple. It has to do with the fact that ad placements do not need interactions from users. They’re magical in every sense.

There is even a massive debate circulating whether Apple’s rule of ridding third parties from targeting users was fair or not. So it’s a sticky mess.