News: 0179280100

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The Mac App Flea Market

(Tuesday September 16, 2025 @11:21AM (msmash) from the flea-market dept.)


A search for "AI chat" in the Mac App Store [1]returns dozens of applications sporting black-and-white icons nearly identical to ChatGPT's official logo. OpenAI's ChatGPT desktop application isn't available through the Mac App Store and can only be downloaded from the company's website. The copycat applications use various combinations of "AI," "Chat," and "Bot" in their names, including "AI Chat Bot : Ask Assistant," "AI Chatbot: Chat Ask Assistant," and dozens of similar variations. One application named itself "Al Chatbot" using a lowercase L instead of a capital I in "AI." Additional lookalike icons mimicking Claude, Grok, and Gemini applications also appear in search results.



[1] https://blog.jim-nielsen.com/2025/mac-app-flea-market/


Similar issues on iOS app store (Score:4, Interesting)

by LodCrappo ( 705968 )

My IT team regularly has to help iPhone users install the Microsoft authenticator app for MFA as part of adding them to our email system. It is very difficult to walk someone through this over the phone as there are so many fake authenticator apps with very similar icons. They even work, they just charge a $10/month subscription for something the official MS app does for free.

Re: Similar issues on iOS app store (Score:2)

by newcastlejon ( 1483695 )

Have you tried just sending them a link to the app in the store? I think [1]this [apple.com] is the one you mean.

[1] https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/microsoft-authenticator/id983156458

Re: (Score:2)

by LodCrappo ( 705968 )

difficult to send them anything until they are onboarded to our communications system, which requires the MFA app. Kind of chicken and egg situation

So what? (Score:2)

by 0xG ( 712423 )

What do they connect to on the back end?

No mention of that in TFS.

Poor reporting...

Could have picked a better name (Score:2)

by russotto ( 537200 )

"Chat" is generic. So is "AI". The logos are deceptive, but OpenAI has no claim on "chat", "chatbot"or "AI chatbot", and no one should expect that those terms mean "ChatGPT"

Al Bot (Score:2)

by Chris Mattern ( 191822 )

I've got one [1]here. [nocookie.net]

[1] https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/p__/images/0/0a/Alphonse_Elric.png/revision/latest?cb=20220624000315&path-prefix=protagonist

apple profits from scams (Score:2)

by drinkypoo ( 153816 )

Recently got a work email saying that the Apple app store is carrying a fraudulent version of our app which costs money including having a subscription fee while ours is free. I would assume the scam app also steals PII. Apple isn't responding to requests to remove it though it's clearly fraudulent (it's even using a version of the same name) which can only be because they get a cut of the fees.

What fools these morals be!