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I estimate that around 10% of my Feedback Assistant reports ever receive a reply or acknowledgement. These are for reproducible bugs in iOS, for which I've pro

I estimate that around 10% of my Feedback Assistant reports ever receive a reply or acknowledgement. These are for reproducible bugs in iOS, for which I've provided an isolated sample project with a 100% reproduction rate. It takes time to create a thoughtful and detailed bug report and the lack of replies are beyond frustrating. I'm glad to see this post and couldn't agree more.

crimsontech 3y ago
Fully agree. I work in security and sent Apple a bypass for child restriction policies on iOS, they told me to send it to feedback. Testing, reproducing, writing it up all takes time and effort. I didn’t want anything from them other than for it to be fixed, I have kids with iPhones. It’s no different than other companies though, I sent a remote code execution to Cisco and they just replied that they already knew about it but the product was approaching end of life so they wouldn’t fix it. I’ve stumbled across so many vulnerabilities over the years and I tend to just ignore them unless I’m being paid to find them. It’s not worth the frustration.
- saagarjha 3y ago
  To be fair, remote code execution and "I got around the child lock on this device" are somewhat different in severity.
  - ary 3y ago
    > remote code execution and "I got around the child lock on this device" are somewhat different in severity You’ll notice that the recipients of both reports responded similarly, with apathy. Perhaps that was the point of juxtaposing them?
- juliob 3y ago
  > It’s no different than other companies though, I sent a remote code execution to Cisco and they just replied that they already knew about it but the product was approaching end of life so they wouldn’t fix it. Huh? That sounds very different from Apple. In that instance, the communication is professional, mature, and respectful of your time and effort.
jbverschoor 3y ago
Same here. TBH I’m starting to get fed up by a lot of Apple things lately
joenot443 3y ago
Respectfully, why file them at all if that's the case? The cynic in me can't help but see that as free high-quality engineering labor for what's already the world's most valuable company. They don't need more help :)
- TheTon 3y ago
  I see a similar response rate as the poster you’re replying to, but I am going to keep filing bugs. If Apple fixes a bug I file, that’s not just to Apple’s benefit, it’s to my benefit and to the benefit of people who use my software as well. Even if they only fix 10% of what I file, it’s a better outcome than if I didn’t file any bugs at all. I also notice that response and fix rates have large variance across components / teams within Apple. Some of them are quite responsive and others are just /dev/null. I do tend to focus my energy on those components where I’ve had success in the past.
- black_puppydog 3y ago
  This is also the stance I take on customer support of Apple products. It got hyped so much about "just working" that I take it as a bit of an insult that they want me to stand in for their CS team. I do make exceptions for close family.
  - tinus_hn 3y ago
    You prefer fixing Windows computers?
    - fxtentacle 3y ago
      No, you just train them to walk to the Apple shop instead of asking you. If you sell products at a premium with the promise of an excellent user experience, then you should also budget for the costs of actually providing that user experience.
      - tinus_hn 3y ago
        Oh so it’s just the old ‘hurr durr Apple bad’ mantra with no alternative.
xign 3y ago
Wow, I'm impressed by your numbers. Because mine is 0%… :( It's really disheartening when you try to file proper bug reports, with proper reproduction steps, my own investigative work and more details of it, etc. Then… silent. As if the app just outputs the bug to /dev/null or something.

crimsontech 3y ago

Fully agree. I work in security and sent Apple a bypass for child restriction policies on iOS, they told me to send it to feedback. Testing, reproducing, writing it up all takes time and effort. I didn’t want anything from them other than for it to be fixed, I have kids with iPhones. It’s no different than other companies though, I sent a remote code execution to Cisco and they just replied that they already knew about it but the product was approaching end of life so they wouldn’t fix it. I’ve stumbled across so many vulnerabilities over the years and I tend to just ignore them unless I’m being paid to find them. It’s not worth the frustration.

saagarjha 3y ago
To be fair, remote code execution and "I got around the child lock on this device" are somewhat different in severity.
- ary 3y ago
  > remote code execution and "I got around the child lock on this device" are somewhat different in severity You’ll notice that the recipients of both reports responded similarly, with apathy. Perhaps that was the point of juxtaposing them?
juliob 3y ago
> It’s no different than other companies though, I sent a remote code execution to Cisco and they just replied that they already knew about it but the product was approaching end of life so they wouldn’t fix it. Huh? That sounds very different from Apple. In that instance, the communication is professional, mature, and respectful of your time and effort.

jbverschoor 3y ago

Same here. TBH I’m starting to get fed up by a lot of Apple things lately

joenot443 3y ago

Respectfully, why file them at all if that's the case? The cynic in me can't help but see that as free high-quality engineering labor for what's already the world's most valuable company. They don't need more help :)

TheTon 3y ago
I see a similar response rate as the poster you’re replying to, but I am going to keep filing bugs. If Apple fixes a bug I file, that’s not just to Apple’s benefit, it’s to my benefit and to the benefit of people who use my software as well. Even if they only fix 10% of what I file, it’s a better outcome than if I didn’t file any bugs at all. I also notice that response and fix rates have large variance across components / teams within Apple. Some of them are quite responsive and others are just /dev/null. I do tend to focus my energy on those components where I’ve had success in the past.
black_puppydog 3y ago
This is also the stance I take on customer support of Apple products. It got hyped so much about "just working" that I take it as a bit of an insult that they want me to stand in for their CS team. I do make exceptions for close family.
- tinus_hn 3y ago
  You prefer fixing Windows computers?
  - fxtentacle 3y ago
    No, you just train them to walk to the Apple shop instead of asking you. If you sell products at a premium with the promise of an excellent user experience, then you should also budget for the costs of actually providing that user experience.
    - tinus_hn 3y ago
      Oh so it’s just the old ‘hurr durr Apple bad’ mantra with no alternative.

xign 3y ago

Wow, I'm impressed by your numbers. Because mine is 0%… :( It's really disheartening when you try to file proper bug reports, with proper reproduction steps, my own investigative work and more details of it, etc. Then… silent. As if the app just outputs the bug to /dev/null or something.