Apple Store build rejected while using CloudKit/iCloud - ios

Question

I just submited my app to the Apple Store and it failed submission because of the following issue and I am quite confuse about how to work around it.
From Apple - 17.2 Details - We noticed that your app requires users to
register with personal information to access non account-based
features. Apps cannot require user registration prior to allowing
access to app content and features that are not associated
specifically to the user.
Next Steps - User registration that requires the sharing of personal
information must be optional or tied to account-specific
functionality. Additionally, the requested information must be
relevant to the features.
My app uses CloudKit to save, retrieve and share records. But the app itself do not ask for any personal details neither share any personal details like emails, names, date of birth..., it just asks the user to have an iCloud account active on the device. Then CloudKit uses the iCloud credentials in order to work.
It becomes confusing because:
1 - I can't change the way CloudKit works and stop asking for the user to login on iCloud. Every app that uses CloudKit needs an user logged on iCloud.
2 - As other apps (facebookas an example) if you do not login the app cannot fundamentally work. So the login is not tied to specific functionality, but to the whole functionality of the app.
The code example bellow is called on an initial screen (before getting inside the app functional areas) every time the app starts to make sure the user has the iCloud going. If the user has iCloud I take him inside the app. If not I stop him and ask him to get iCloud sorted. But I guess that is what they are complaining about here - "User registration that requires the sharing of personal information must be optional or tied to account-specific functionality. Additionally, the requested information must be relevant to the features.".
Which puts myself in a quite confusing situation. Not sure how to resolve the issue. Has anyone has similar issues with CloudKit/iCloud/AppStore Submission? Any insights?
iCloud check code bellow:
func cloudKitCheckIfUserIsAuthenticated (result: (error: NSError?, tryAgain: Bool, takeUserToiCloud: Bool) -> Void){
let container = CKContainer.defaultContainer()
container.fetchUserRecordIDWithCompletionHandler{
(recordId: CKRecordID?, error: NSError?) in
dispatch_async(dispatch_get_main_queue()) {
if error != nil
{
if error!.code == CKErrorCode.NotAuthenticated.rawValue
{
// user not on icloud, taki him there
print("-> cloudKitCheckIfUserIsAuthenticated - error fetching ID - not on icloud")
// ERROR, USER MUST LOGIN TO ICLOUD - LOCK HIM OUTSIDE THE APP
result(error: error, tryAgain: false, takeUserToiCloud: true)
}
print("-> cloudKitCheckIfUserIsAuthenticated - error fetching ID - other error \(error?.description)")
// OTHER ERROR, TRY AGAIN
result(error: error, tryAgain: true, takeUserToiCloud: false)
}
else
{
let publicDatabase = CKContainer.defaultContainer().publicCloudDatabase
publicDatabase.fetchRecordWithID(recordId!,
completionHandler: {(record: CKRecord?, error: NSError?) in
if error != nil
{
// error getting user ID, try again
print("-> cloudKitCheckIfUserIsAuthenticated - error fetching user record - Error \(error)")
// ERROR, TRY AGAIN
result(error: error, tryAgain: true, takeUserToiCloud: false)
}
else
{
if record!.recordType == CKRecordTypeUserRecord
{
// valid record
print("-> cloudKitCheckIfUserIsAuthenticated - fetching user record - valid record found)")
// TAKE USER INSIDE APP
result(error: error, tryAgain: false, takeUserToiCloud: false)
}
else
{
// not valid record
print("-> cloudKitCheckIfUserIsAuthenticated - fetching user record - The record that came back is not a user record")
// ERROR, TRY AGAIN
result(error: error, tryAgain: true, takeUserToiCloud: false)
}
}
})
}
}
}
}

Answer 1

Initially my application would ask the user to login to iCloud on launch screen. If the users did not have an iCloud account functional they would not be able to get inside the app.
Solution
Let the user get inside the app and click on the main sections. In fact the app was completely useless but the user could see it's odd empty screens without the ability to save or load anything. By the time they tried to load or save things I would prompt them the needed to login on iCloud to make the app usable.
Practical outcome
I don't think apple's change request added anything of value to the UX. In fact it just added complexity for the user to understand what he can do and what he cannot.
As an example Facebook locks the user outside if the user do not provide his personal details because without this data the application has absolutely no use and that is my case... You could arguably say the user should be able to get inside, but what he would see or do? Then you would have to cater for all the exceptions this UX builds and throw warnings for the user to fix the account issue everywhere on an annoying pattern of warnings.
So I am not sure "how" Facebook could get it approved and I could not.
Although I got the app approved I disagree Apple feedback improved the application in any way.