Facebook says Apple its restoring key developer tool

NEW YORK (AP) — Facebook says Apple is restoring a key development tool the iPhone maker disabled Wednesday.

Apple's earlier move followed disclosure of a Facebook program that paid users, including teens, to download a "research" app that could extensively track peoples' app and internet usage.

Apple said Facebook was abusing the tool, known as a developer enterprise certificate, to distribute the app in a way that allowed the social network to sidestep Apple restrictions on data collection.

Restoration of the certificate means Facebook can once distribute internal apps to its employees that help them test software features before users see them.

While Facebook engineers could still write code and work on the iOS apps during the shutoff, their ability to test apps in the field was limited.