Apple starts peeping into your iCloud links. Here's what you need to know
The company doesn’t disclose how it’s going to be done.
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- Apple will check public iCloud links shared with “Anyone with the Link” for harmful content.
- Links shared only with selected people are not affected by the new checks.
- Public link content is no longer end-to-end encrypted, even with Advanced Data Protection enabled.
Key Takeaways by nexos.ai, reviewed by Cybernews staff.
Apple will be checking public iCloud links to ensure they don’t contain “harmful content.”
The change comes with iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and visionOS version 27.3 or later.
The company noted that this is only applicable to users who share content with “Anyone with the Link.”
This isn’t applicable when users share their content via “People you choose,” since the recipient is someone the user has approved.
The reason for such verification is that once a user shares content that allows anyone with the link to open it, the content is no longer end-to-end encrypted, “even if the owner or participants have turned on Advanced Data Protection,” Apple explained.
If Apple flags suspicious content, it has the right “to move, refuse, modify, remove, or delete the content at any time.”
Sharing such content may also result in Apple blocking or disabling a user’s new or existing accounts and even involving law enforcement.
Apple didn’t define what counts as harmful content, but it could include child sexual abuse material (CSAM), malware, or other types of illegal content, The Register noted.
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The company also didn’t elaborate on how these checks will be implemented and whether the links will be monitored automatically or with human supervision.
The checks were introduced in iOS 27.3, which was released to developers in beta on November 3rd. The software’s public release is expected in December.
