Weird desktop downloads.

My app typically garners around 30 downloads per day as a paid application, predominantly on iPad and iPhone platforms. Desktop purchases are rare for my app, often limited to one or two a month, given its design is optimized for iPad rather than desktop use. However, in an unusual turn of events, I've observed a significant spike in activity over the past two days, with more than 20 paid downloads originating from the US—all from desktop users. This is particularly puzzling because not only does my app seldom attract desktop users, but the volume of downloads per hour has also surged beyond the usual rate, something I've never experienced before. Could there be any plausible explanations for this anomaly? We are talking about a paid app.

Replies

There have been occasional reports of unexplained download spikes on the forum from time to time. More often for free apps. Sometimes they might be scams. See e.g. https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/695036

You should ask Apple for an explanation, before they ask you.