Apple Randomly Closes Bug Reports Unless Developers Verify the Bug Still Exists

Apple's Feedback Assistant: Verify or We Close Your Bug

Developer Jeff Johnson has exposed Apple's practice of randomly closing bug reports unless developers take time to verify the issue still exists in beta software — even after Apple has sat on the report for years without responding.

The Case

Johnson filed bug report FB12088655 (a privacy leak in network filter extensions) in March 2023. For three years, he received no response from Apple. Then, a couple of weeks ago, Apple asked him to verify the issue in macOS 26.4 beta 4 and update his report — with a threat to close it if he didn't respond within two weeks.

The bug was not fixed. Johnson confirmed it still exists in the public macOS 26.4 release.

The Pattern

Johnson describes a systematic pattern:

• Apple sits on bug reports for years without response
• Then demands developers verify issues in beta software
• Threatens to close reports if developers do not comply
• Does not tell developers whether the bug was actually fixed before demanding verification
• Marks unfixed bugs as "Investigation complete - Unable to diagnose"

The Incentive Problem

"I can only assume that some bozos in Apple leadership incentivize underlings to close bug reports, no matter whether the bugs are fixed. Out of sight, out of mind. Apple's internal metrics probably tell them that they have no software quality problem, because the number of open bug reports is kept lower artificially."

Irony

Apple's own beta process failed: a Safari crashing bug was reported a month ago, Apple failed to fix it before the public release, and the bug shipped to all users.

At 239 points on Hacker News, the article resonates with developers frustrated by Apple's dismissive bug reporting culture.