At the WWDC, Apple announced its latest privacy and security innovations, reaffirming its commitment to user privacy as a fundamental human right. These updates include significant improvements to Safari Private Browsing, Communication Safety, Lockdown Mode, and app privacy.
Enhanced Privacy Controls for User Data
Safari Private Browsing, which was introduced by Apple years ago, now offers enhanced protection against trackers and unauthorized access to users’ devices.
Advanced tracking and fingerprinting safeguards help prevent websites from tracking or identifying users’ devices. Additionally, Private Browsing now locks when not in use, allowing users to keep their tabs open even when away from their devices.
Photos Privacy Permission has been improved with a new embedded Photos picker. This feature enables users to share specific photos with apps while keeping the rest of their library private. Users will be provided with more information about what they are sharing and occasional reminders of their choice when apps request access to their entire photo library.
Link Tracking Protection has been extended to Messages, Mail, and Safari Private Browsing. This update removes extra tracking information from links shared in these apps, ensuring user privacy while maintaining the functionality of the links.
Apple has also made significant app privacy improvements. Developers now have access to more information about the data practices of third-party software development kits (SDKs) used in their apps. This enables them to provide more accurate Privacy Nutrition Labels and enhances the integrity of the software supply chain by supporting signatures for third-party SDKs, adding an extra layer of protection against abuse.
Features to Help Protect User Safety
In terms of user safety, Apple has introduced Communication Safety, designed to protect children from explicit content in Messages. This feature now covers video content in addition to still images and can be integrated into third-party apps. Sensitive Content Warning has been introduced to help adult users avoid unwanted nude images and videos in various apps.
To safeguard user data, Apple has implemented updates for password and passkey sharing, allowing users to create password-sharing groups.
Share passwords and passkeys with groups
Lockdown Mode has been expanded to provide additional protection against mercenary spyware, offering safer wireless connectivity defaults, media handling, sandboxing, and network security optimizations.
Apple has also introduced new features with privacy and security at their core. Check In enables users to inform selected contacts when they’ve reached their destination safely. NameDrop allows secure sharing of contact information and content through AirDrop. Live Voicemail provides live transcriptions of incoming voicemail messages, giving users the option to answer calls in real-time.
Availability
Later on in this year, these upgrades will be made available for free as part of software updates.
Regarding the latest privacy updates, Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering, said,
Privacy is designed into every new Apple product and feature from the beginning. We are focused on keeping our users in the driver’s seat when it comes to their data by continuing to provide industry-leading privacy features and the best data security in the world. This approach is evident in a number of features on our platforms, like the major updates to Safari Private Browsing, as well as the expansion of Lockdown Mode.