Apple's latest iOS 13.5 bug prevents some iPhone apps from launching

Apple's latest iOS 13.5 update includes two important features that could make iPhones with Face ID unlock faster and also let developers develop apps using the Exposure Notification tool. However, you might want to wait for some days before updating your iPhone as several users have reported a bug that makes some of the installed apps unusable.

The strange iOS 13.5 bug is preventing apps from launching. We experienced a similar issue on our iPhone 11 Pro (review) running on iOS 13.5. After updating the iPhone to iOS 13.5, WhatsApp stopped working and starting showing a message which read “This app is no longer shared with you. To use it, you must buy it from the App Store."

The prompt message gives user the option to either cancel and close the message window or redirect to the App Store. After tapping on the App Store and then on 'Open', the same error message seen in the beginning pops up.

What is this new @WhatsApp glitch? Getting this error after updating the app to 2.20.52. @WABetaInfo pic.twitter.com/lJGlEDbehD

— Pranav (@PranavHegdeHere) May 22, 2020

The only way around is to reinstall the app. The issue is not limited only to WhatsApp. Users on Twitter stated they received the same message and could only use these apps after reinstallation.

Still on the previous iOS , experiencing this issue with @GooglePayIndia @GooglePay pic.twitter.com/LIdXiSyIlp

— Mehul Kumar (@kmehul26) May 23, 2020

Something is strange It’s not a ‘shared’ app but this message, ‘This app is no longer shared with you.’ showed up when I tried to launch the Facebook app here pic.twitter.com/RIcEDyasAZ

Story continues below Advertisement

Remove Ad

— Loyi Hsu (@loyiyshsu) May 22, 2020

Hey @AppleSupport and @WhatsApp I have updated my app this morning and it's no longer opening. Any problem? The message is: "This app is no longer shared with you." I would assume you’re looking into this problem, if not please do. It’s super annoying. pic.twitter.com/WbwsNxgUIu

— MrTM (@tapasya77) May 22, 2020

9to5Mac notes that the issue could be on the server-side preventing iOS from verifying the user who has already bought the app and trying to open it.

Apple has not yet confirmed the problem on its official System Status webpage. While one would recommend updating the iPhone to the latest operating system for security reasons, we would advise our readers to wait until Apple fixes this bug.

Also Read: Apple releases iOS 13.5 with Exposure Notification API for tracing COVID-19 cases