Apple appears to finally be fed up with websites distributing developer beta profiles without permission. For years, websites like BetaProfiles.com and IPSW.dev have offered free profiles to users that did not pay to join the Apple Developer Program. As of this week, both websites are offline following reported threats of legal action against them and Apple has based this on the launch of iOS 16.
Apple threatens sites with unofficial beta profiles
This Wednesday, Beta Profiles said on Twitter that the website would shut down soon. At the time of writing, the website is no longer online:
The website recently received a letter from lawyers representing Apple, MacRumors reports. Beta Profiles had to choose between shutting down the website forever or potentially facing litigation. But if you installed the beta profile from BetaProfiles.com, you can continue using it to install future iOS 16 beta updates. Just don’t delete the profile, or you’ll have to either pay to join the Apple Developer Program or switch over to the public betas.
But Apple didn’t stop there. Nicolás Álvarez claims Apple sent Twitter a Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) takedown notice regarding tweets he shared that contained links to IPSW.dev. You can even read the complaint on Github.
It’s unclear why Apple is just now getting around to dealing with this. That said, it’s clear the company now takes the purported copyright infringement seriously. After all, Apple charges developers $99 a year to be members of the Apple Developer Program. These sites allowed countless Apple device owners to skip out on those fees.
How to get the iOS 16 beta for free
Thankfully, you don’t need to pay for s program or visit any third-party websites to test Apple’s software early. Anyone can sign up for the Apple Beta Software Program free of charge to test unreleased iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, watchOS, and HomePod updates. Just visit this page on your Apple device and hit the button that says “Sign up.”
If you want to know more about the latest iOS 16 public beta, click here.
More iPhone coverage: For more iPhone news, visit our iPhone 14 guide.
