5 Ways Apple Plans to Supercharge Privacy on Your iPhone and Mac

Privacy was a big focus at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) this week, with SVP of Software Engineering Craig Federighi making a point to note that Apple believes "privacy is a fundamental human right."

Features unveiled this week build on the privacy "nutrition labels" for apps that Apple rolled out in November, as well as data-tracking opt-ins that arrived in January. This fall, when iOS 15 and iPadOS 15 are released, iPhone and iPad users will have even more control over their private data. Here's a list of new features to look out for across Apple’s apps and services.

Privacy Reports Keep Tabs on Apps and Safari

Privacy Reports in iOS 15, iPadOS 15, and watchOS 8 give you an overview of how apps handle your data. See how often apps use the permissions you’ve granted—such as access to location, photos, camera, microphone, and contacts—over a seven-day period. You also get insight about any third-party sites with which an app is sharing your information. On macOS, privacy reports are also coming to the Safari browser.

It will be interesting to see how Facebook responds, given its insistence that tracking keeps social networking free of charge. CEO Mark Zuckerberg already took a pre-WWDC swipe at Apple to say that Facebook creators will continue to receive 100% of revenue earned on the platform until 2023. 

Mail Goes Under Cover

Apple is hoping you will give its Mail app a try with features like Mail Privacy Protection, which hides your IP address and your location, and will conceal if and when you opened any emails. Paid versions of iCloud also add an option called Hide My Email, which lets you create a spoofed email address that forwards messages to your real inbox, so fewer marketers get their hands on your email address. Set up as many addresses as you want and delete them at any time. If you've already been thinking for a while about quitting Gmail to reclaim your privacy, this could be a decent incentive to actually make the leap.

Siri Does More Local Processing

On-device speech recognition is coming to Siri, Apple's voice assistant. This means you don't need an internet connection to tap into the feature, and your queries don't leave the device, eliminating the possibility of unwanted or unauthorized audio recordings. Apple says this change has the added benefit of allowing Siri to respond to your commands more quickly.

Don't Call Private Relay a VPN

iCloud’s paid subscription service will add Private Relay, which makes the Safari browsing experience more secure. Private Relay encrypts the traffic leaving your device and sends it through two relays, so no one, not even Apple, can see what sites you’re visiting.

Furthermore, Apple says Private Relay is seamless and will not slow downloads. Is it a VPN? It sure sounds like one, but Apple says no. Still, Private Relay won't be available in some countries that have cracked down on VPNs, such as China.

I asked our resident VPN expert Max Eddy about Apple's new Private Relay feature. He said, "Apple seems keen to differentiate Private Relay from VPNs, and that's fine. What's important is that one of the biggest players in consumer technology is pushing a new standard in privacy. That's great for Apple customers, but we should hope that this will set a new standard for privacy for other companies to follow and improve privacy and security for everyone."

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Along those lines, iCloud Digital Legacy will allow family and friends to request access to your iCloud account after you die. While you're still around, though, Apple will let you regain control of your account by designating an iCloud Recovery Contact, who will help you get back into your account if you forget your password or device passcode. This person will not have access to your account, but they'll receive a special code that will let you back into your account.

Finally, Apple has upgraded HomeKit Secure Video, allowing you to connect an unlimited number of security cameras and their video footage to iCloud. The recorded video does not count against your iCloud storage.

Share Your Health Data Safely

The Health app on iOS 15 will include a new Sharing tab that lets people you trust get access to your health data. You could, for example, share this information with your doctor or family. Or an elderly family member could give you access to data from their phone or Apple Watch. Apple encrypts your health data on your device and while it is being shared.

WWDC 2021: iOS 15, iPadOS 15, and macOS 12 in 8 minutes