Chinese pirates create web-based pirate app store

The Chinese pirates who created KuaiYong, a Windows app that allows pirated iOS software to be installed on an iPhone or iPad without jailbreaking, has now created a web version of its pirate app store, reports TechInAsia (via techmeme) …

KuaiYong used a bulk enterprise licence to get around the safeguards designed to protect apps from being pirated. The new website, 7659.com, is essentially just a front end to the app: downloading any iOS software from the site will download and install the KuaiYong app if it isn’t already installed.

How KuaiYong has remained in operation since June of last year is something of a mystery, though it has tried to keep a low profile outside China by not making an English-language version available. The website similarly uses geolocation to redirect visitors from outside China, but surprisingly it does this to the KuaiYong homepage rather than to an error page.

Apple usually takes a reasonably robust approach to piracy, blocking jailbreaks and issuing take-down notices. But Apple has to tread carefully in China, having come under fire from State-owned media for its warranty policies in the country, resulting in an apology by Tim Cook. It has more recently been named been named in a porn investigation in the country. It may fear that an aggressive response to a problem with limited impact outside China may do more harm than good – and even those customers in the west willing to deprive app developers of their earnings are likely to be extremely nervous about installing Windows software created by Chinese pirates.