Private App: scam or not?

Designed by SURIKATE SAS, Appli Privée is an application that offers smartphone and tablet owners the opportunity to earn money by testing applications produced by third parties. Concretely, the user is called upon to try the application and give his opinion. Following the test, the platform pays him a certain sum. Since its launch, the application has been a dazzling success and its community has more than 600,000 members today. Is this platform really reliable? Wouldn’t this be a new form of scam?

The Appli Privée odyssey began in 2010, with its appearance on the iOS platform. At the time, owners of iPhones and iPads were invited to give their opinion on applications in the development phase for a fee. In 2011, AppliPrivée landed on smartphones and tablets running the Android operating system. At its inception, the platform offered 4 forms of remuneration, namely bank transfer of sums earned, Amazon vouchers, iTunes cards and PayPal transfers. Due to the many problems encountered with PayPal, the platform finally decided to abandon this payment method.

The principle is simple, users are invited to test applications in the development phase, that is to say software that has not been officially released. The platform actually does testing for developers and software development companies. Users, who act as testers here, download the applications to be tested on their tablets or smartphones. They launch these applications, use their features and return to the platform by completing a questionnaire. The different reviews allow the developers to fix bugs and other problems contained in the application. This feedback from Appli Privée users also allows the companies that develop these applications to have a foretaste of the expected success. The platform also conducts surveys on behalf of third parties. AppliPrivée users can thus make money by participating in these surveys and filling out survey forms.

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Private App: scam or not?

The Private App software is available for free download from the Apple Store and Google Play. The use of the platform therefore requires the possession of a Google account, a valid e-mail address or an Apple ID. The user must then create an AppliPrivée account. The account can be created on the company’s website (http://www.appliprivee.com/) or from the application itself. However, it should be remembered that the use of AppliPrivée is only possible for people residing in metropolitan France. You must also have a bank account domiciled in a credit institution operating in France.

After signing up and installing Private App on their mobile device, the user must enable push notifications. The latter will inform him as soon as a new application to be tested or a survey is available. The user clicks on “participate” and a link is provided to him for downloading the application to be tested. It is automatically redirected to Google Play or iTunes as appropriate. After choosing to participate in the test, the tester has 24 hours to complete the test. The number of people who can participate in each test is generally limited and only the fastest have the chance to participate. The tester should open the app and try out each of its features. He is then invited to fill in a form in order to give his impressions. In order to be sure that the tester has really tried the software, the platform asks him questions specific to certain buttons and features of the software. For a test to be validated, all the steps must be validated and all the questions answered.

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A well-conducted test or survey entitles you to a gain of 25 euro cents. When the tester reaches a certain amount, the platform automatically offers him bonuses. Thus, testers who have reached €5 are offered a bonus of 0.5 cents. Those who reach 10 euros, are offered one euro. A cumulative gain of 15 euros entitles you to a bonus of 1.5 €. From 20 euros, the tester sees his account credited with an additional 2 €. From 30 euros, this bonus increases to 2.5 €. Testers who have crossed the 50 euros mark are offered 3 euros.

Bonuses are also offered to the most responsive testers. The winnings obtained on Appli Privée can be transferred to the tester’s bank account as soon as their total reaches 5 euros. They can be exchanged for an Amazon voucher as soon as they reach 15 euros. For exchanges against an iTunes card, their cumulative amount must reach 25 euros.

Private App: scam or not?

Many forums make cases of people who have never been able to collect their earnings on Appli Privée. There are also many users who cry scam. As already mentioned, the platform has experienced many difficulties with certain means of payment and in particular PayPal. This situation has led to loss of earnings for many users. To overcome this difficulty, the platform has waived the use of PayPal as a means of payment. Recently, its customer service department has been doing its best to solve all the problems caused. On its Facebook page, AppliPrivée receives all complaints and strives to deal with them on a case-by-case basis.

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Another problem is that of the inactivity timeout. A user who does not perform any test for a period of 30 days will have his account automatically deleted and his earnings lost. Appli Privée is basically not a scam per se, but how it works can be a source of a lot of frustration. Its presence on iTunes would have long been questioned if it was a scam scheme. It should be noted, however, that the gains are ridiculous, because you have to perform the trifle of 20 tests to hope to receive nothing but 5 euros.