Last year, Apple announced a slight change in the App Store guidelines. It dictated that all apps which allow in-app user account creation should compulsorily offer an option to let users delete their account as well. The deadline for implementing this mandate has now been delayed.

The deadline has already been pushed back twice. Apple’s new deadline for developers to incorporate an account deletion option for users is now June 30, 2022. After the date, all applications listed on the App Store must allow users the freedom to delete their in-app accounts if they were allowed to create one in the first place. Additional details about the requirement have been explained in the App Store Review Guidelines 5.1.1(v).

“If your app doesn’t include significant account-based features, let people use it without a login. If your app supports account creation, you must also offer account deletion within the app. Apps may not require users to enter personal information to function, except when directly relevant to the core functionality of the app or required by law.”

The rules make it amply clear that developers cannot get away with merely deactivating user accounts. If they choose to, users should have the power to erase all their personal data records from the app developers’ database using the account deletion option.

Apple adds that within every app’s navigation menu, the option to delete one’s account must be “easy to find.” Additionally, if the app uses the Sign in with Apple, the onus is on the developer to ensure the user’s tokens are revoked after their account is deleted.

This change can be viewed as one of Apple’s regular attempts to ensure users have more control over their data when using third-party apps in the Apple ecosystem.