By Noah Rothstein
Apple continues to brand itself as a defender of consumer privacy with its new set of controls for the upcoming iOS 15 update.
Currently slated for a September release, the new OS version will implement enhanced privacy controls for Siri’s speech recognition and email. The new OS will also feature a new “privacy report” that gives device users even more insight into what data apps access.
One of the more significant changes is that Siri voice requests will be processed on the device by default. In 2019, it was revealed that Apple passed on random Siri search samples to contractors worldwide as a quality assurance measure, asking them to rate various factors such as the appropriateness of Siri’s response.
An investigation by The Guardian found that contractors were supplied with clips of device users discussing drug deals and confidential medical information, among other examples of sensitive interactions often captured when Siri activated without the user’s knowledge.
After the report was published, Apple paused the program and added the ability for users to opt-out. Users remain opted in by default and must manually disengage from the program through the settings menu.
The new update includes a Mail Privacy Protection feature that automatically hides IP addresses in sent messages and prevents recipients from seeing if the message has been opened in an effort by Apple to enhance email privacy.
The new App Privacy Report will build onto the anti-tracking measures introduced by the App Tracking Transparency framework in iOS 14.
Outside of the general improvements to privacy controls, Apple also fortified certain pre-installed apps. FaceTime in iOS 15 will allow users to blur out the background and automatically filter out background audio, and it allows for more faces to be displayed on-screen simultaneously.
iCloud will allow users to hide email addresses, and the Safari browser will now hide user IP addresses from view by websites. Apple Wallet will allow users to add driver’s licenses and state IDs to move more quickly through airport TSA checkpoints and is expanding the ability to store digital keys to unlock and start vehicles. However, it is unclear whether this is ultimately a good privacy move for the end-user.
Apps can now implement a “share current location” button that asks the end-user for their location just once to enable and optimize necessary features, then does not track them any further. There will also be a new “secure paste” feature limiting access to the clipboard to the app that the text was copied from until the user pastes it in the new app.
In addition to iOS 15, these new privacy controls and features will be added to iPadOS 15, macOS Monterey, and watchOS 8.
However, not all markets will have access to these changes. Certain national governments demand access to user data under the law, like China, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, etc.
Particular features will also require an additional paid subscription fee. iOS 15 users will have to pay for iCloud+, a premium feature that costs between 99 cents to $9.99 per month depending on the storage plan, to get the automatic IP address masking in Safari and the ability to hide their email addresses in the app. The other privacy controls and enhanced app features will be free.
As with iOS 14, Apple said that the device model cutoff for the new operating system version would be for iPhone 6s and newer.
Apple’s changes are not without criticism, though. On multiple fronts, Apple has still been criticized for not holding its own apps to the same standard that third-party developers are held.
