# Guideline 1.1.1 - Safety: Defamatory or Discriminatory Content

**Guideline:** 1.1.1 · **Store:** Apple App Store · **Severity:** high · **Fix difficulty:** medium · **Typical turnaround:** 1-3 days

Canonical URL: https://appstorereject.com/rejections/apple/1/guideline-111-safety-defamatory-or-discriminatory-content

## Description

Apple is rejecting your app because it contains content they consider defamatory, discriminatory, or mean-spirited toward a targeted group. This covers references or commentary about religion, race, sexual orientation, gender, national/ethnic origin, or other protected groups — particularly if the app could humiliate, intimidate, or harm individuals. This rejection often catches developers off guard because the problematic content may be user-generated, sourced from a third-party API, or intended as satire. Apple does exempt professional political satirists and humorists, but the bar for that exemption is high — your app needs to clearly be a satire/humor platform, not an app that happens to contain offensive content. The root cause is usually one of: (1) unmoderated user-generated content that includes slurs or hate speech, (2) app-provided content or imagery that stereotypes or targets a group, or (3) a content feed from an external source that hasn't been filtered. Apple reviewers may flag this even if the content isn't prominently displayed — a single screen or buried section can trigger this rejection.

## Common variations

- App includes defamatory or mean-spirited content targeting individuals or groups
- Content that could humiliate, intimidate, or place a targeted individual or group in harm's way
- App contains discriminatory content based on religion, race, sexual orientation, gender, or ethnicity
- User-generated content includes offensive material targeting protected groups

## Example rejection email

```
Guideline 1.1.1 - Safety - Objectionable Content

Your app contains content that many users would find objectionable and offensive. Specifically, your app includes defamatory or mean-spirited content that targets individuals or groups based on their religion, race, sexual orientation, gender, or ethnicity.

Next Steps:
Please review your app content and remove any content that could be considered defamatory, discriminatory, or mean-spirited.
```

## Resolution steps

## Quick Assessment
- **Risk level:** High
- **Resolution path:** Fix & Resubmit (remove or moderate offending content)
- **Typical turnaround:** 1-3 days

## The Fix

01. **Identify the specific content** — Ask Apple via the Resolution Center what specific content triggered the rejection. If they don't specify, audit all text, images, and user-generated content for anything targeting protected groups.

02. **Remove or moderate the content** — If it's app-provided content, remove it. If it's user-generated, implement content filtering and moderation to prevent it from appearing.

03. **Add content moderation infrastructure** — If your app has any UGC component, implement keyword filtering, a reporting mechanism, and human or AI moderation review.

04. **Review third-party content sources** — If your app pulls content from APIs or feeds, add a filtering layer to catch discriminatory content before it reaches users.

05. **Document your moderation approach** — In the Review Notes, explain what content was removed and what moderation systems are now in place.

## Prevention
- Implement proactive content moderation for any UGC features before submission
- Use content filtering APIs (Apple's own or third-party) to catch offensive content
- Regularly audit third-party content sources for policy compliance

## Appeal guidance

Only appeal if the content is clearly satirical from a professional satire/humor platform, or if the reviewer misidentified the content. If the flagged content is user-generated, the fix is moderation — not an appeal.

## Before / after examples

**Before:** App displays unmoderated user comments including slurs and hate speech targeting ethnic groups
**After:** App implements keyword filtering, user reporting, and human moderation queue — offensive content is removed within 24 hours
**Why it works:** Apple requires active content moderation, not just reactive removal after complaints.

## Common questions

**Can you appeal a 1.1.1 rejection?**

Only appeal if the content is clearly satirical from a professional satire/humor platform, or if the reviewer misidentified the content. If the flagged content is user-generated, the fix is moderation — not an appeal.

**How long does this typically take to fix?**

Typical turnaround is 1-3 days (difficulty: medium). After resubmission, most re-reviews complete within 24-48 hours.

---
*Machine-readable source: https://api.appstorereject.com/api/rejections/detail?slug=guideline-111-safety-defamatory-or-discriminatory-content*