It appears TutuApp and TweakBox are not working again today. Many affected users have taken to social platforms, including Twitter and Reddit, to complain about issues they are facing with these third-party mobile app installers, which were first spotted by tech site PiunikaWeb.
TutuApp and TweakBox not working
Some TweakBox users claim they are unable to install apps, while others are seeing a revoked access message.
“Why does my IPhone not allow me to download 3rd party apps anymore? It used to be able to but after they got revoked I cant [sic] download them or any 3rd party app,” one affected user said on Reddit.
@TweakboxSupport everytime i try to download spotify++ it shows a grey box when it’s done and i’ve deleted and reinstalled tweakbox and it still won’t work
— joey alyssa (@joeyalyssa2) April 8, 2019
Many users say when they try to download any app, all they get is an icon on their phone saying “Installing,” but nothing happens. It appears to be a widespread issue. One user even noted that this isn’t the first time TweakBox is not working and suggested that the app would be back up soon.
“Heard they get revoked after a while but I just started using them. Maybe have to wait till they are remade? Let me know if you find anything out,” a Reddit user said.
In addition to the complaints about TweakBox not working, users of the TutuApp installer are also reporting a similar issue.
“Tutu app isn’t working, I tried re downloading it but everytime [sic] I do it, the app just stays gray and won’t let me use the app,” one Twitter user complained.
@TutuApp_vip tutu app wants to download but when it downloads it’s stays dark and it ends up not working
— ?CONSCIENCE? (@SLXME1) April 7, 2019
It seems the issue is not just limited to TweakBox and TutuApp but other installers as well. Some users even say AppValley is not working for them.
“Niether [sic] appvalley, tutu app, or tweatbox [sic] are working im [sic] so frustrated,” one Twitter said.
This is not the first time we are hearing about TweakBox or TutuApp not working. Users raised similar complaints a couple of months ago as well. At the time, many speculated that the issues were appearing because of an update from Apple. However, it was later found that Apple had nothing to do with it.
TweakBox and TutuApp fixing the issue
One good thing is that TweakBox and TutuApp are aware of the issues. They are also actively working on fixes.
“Revoked again and again. We are fixing for a few hours and we need more time to fix it. Sorry for the inconvenience,” Tutu app’s team said in a tweet.
Hey. Tutu has always been there.?
Please be patient.?
We are still fixing it.?— TutuApp (@TutuApp_vip) April 8, 2019
TweakBox is also working to address the issues. In fact, it has been working on them over the past couple of days, but their certificate is getting revoked again and again, notes PiunikaWeb.
“And revoked again. let’s wait until tomorrow for things to clear up. sorry guys. first let down in 3 years. truly sorry guys,” TweakBox’s team said in a post.
Apple revoked 4 certificates today, I guess it was a purge for all the month without revokes, don’t worry, we just fixed it again and you can reinstall your apps as usual.
— TweakBox (@TweakBoxApp) April 6, 2019
It is probably only a matter of time before TweakBox and TutuApp are up again. In the meantime, if you have any other workaround, you can do that and check back after some time to see if the apps are up again.
Misuse of Apple’s enterprise certificates
Services like TutuApp, Panda Helper, AppValley and TweakBox take advantage of Apple’s enterprise certificate program to distribute modified versions of popular apps. For instance, AppValley shares an ad-free version of the music streaming app Spotify even on the free tier. TutuApp offers Minecraft, which normally costs $6.99 on the App Store, for free. Other apps affected by such installers are Pokémon GO and Angry Birds.
Reuters contacted Apple about such piracy in February, and soon, several pirated applications were banned. However, a few days later, the apps reappeared using different enterprise certificates. In a statement to Reuters at the time, Apple said it is continuously monitoring the misuse of its enterprise certificates.
“Developers that abuse our enterprise certificates are in violation of the Apple Developer Enterprise Program Agreement and will have their certificates terminated, and if appropriate, they will be removed from our Developer Program completely,” Apple said.
Apple’s enterprise certificate program landed in the limelight after it was discovered that Facebook misused it to share its Facebook Research VPN. A TechCrunch investigation found that the program was also used by several porn and gambling apps.
It is presumably impossible for Apple to track the real-time distribution of its enterprise certificates or even the apps downloaded on iPhones through this way. It can cancel certificates if they are misused, but this does not seem to have any real,. lasting effect.
