Apple privacy policy — change history

A former UK Competition and Markets Authority official has filed a $2.7 billion lawsuit against Apple, alleging the company applied stricter App Tracking Transparency rules to third-party developers than to its own services, giving Apple's advertising business an unfair advantage. The 2021 ATT policy requires apps to ask users' permission before tracking their activity across other apps and websites. European regulators in Germany, France, Italy, and Poland have investigated or fined Apple ov...

Apple American Group LLC notified current and former employees in August 2026 that an unauthorized actor accessed its network servers on April 8-9, 2026, compromising files containing employee personal information. The specific types of data exposed were not disclosed in the breach notice, though the company stated there is no indication of identity theft or fraud related to the incident. A law firm is investigating potential legal claims on behalf of affected individuals who may face increas...

Nine major tech companies including Apple, Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, and Samsung face a class action lawsuit in Chicago federal court alleging they collected users' voice recordings without consent to train AI models, violating Illinois' Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA). The lawsuit, filed by journalists and narrators, claims companies harvested data from various sources without informing users or obtaining required consent, as mandated by BIPA. Under Illinois law, companies could face...

Germany's competition authority ruled that Apple's App Tracking Transparency prompts unfairly favor the company's own apps through encouraging wording and design, while discouraging users from consenting to data collection by third-party apps. Apple must now redesign its data collection consent prompts to be neutral in content, wording, and layout within four months, with these changes subject to independent monitoring for seven years. The ruling addresses concerns that Apple's 2021 privacy f...

Apple is facing a class-action lawsuit after researchers discovered that its paid iCloud Private Relay feature fails to hide users' IP addresses in certain situations, including when using passkeys or when websites employ specific data-loading methods. The plaintiff claims he paid for iCloud Plus specifically to protect his browsing privacy, but the service failed to deliver the promised protection against tracking and profiling. The lawsuit seeks to force Apple to change its practices and pr...

Apple sued OpenAI alleging that two former Apple employees improperly accessed and stole trade secrets after joining the AI company, which now employs over 400 former Apple workers. OpenAI denies the allegations, claiming Apple made investigative errors including emailing the wrong person and that Apple's own security lapses allowed the accused employees to access Apple systems. The case centers on concerns about proprietary technology protection as OpenAI prepares to launch AI hardware produ...

Apple filed a new legal challenge in July 2026 against a UK government order demanding access to encrypted iCloud backups of British users. The dispute began in 2025 when the UK secretly ordered Apple to provide access to data protected by Advanced Data Protection, which would require Apple to weaken encryption since it does not hold the keys. In response, Apple stopped allowing new UK users to enable Advanced Data Protection and maintains it will never build a backdoor into its encryption.

A lawsuit has been filed against Apple alleging that its "Hide My Email" feature, designed to protect users' real email addresses through anonymous aliases, contains a security vulnerability that allows anyone to uncover the actual addresses behind the generated aliases. Security researchers reportedly notified Apple of the flaw in June 2025, but the company continued advertising the feature as secure while leaving the issue unresolved. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because expo...

Apple has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging the AI company systematically stole trade secrets through former Apple employees now working on OpenAI's hardware business. The lawsuit claims OpenAI recruited over 400 ex-Apple employees and structured its hiring process to extract confidential information about unreleased products and proprietary designs, including asking interview candidates to bring physical Apple parts to "show and tell" sessions. Apple describes OpenAI's hardware operat...

The US Supreme Court will hear Apple's appeal of a contempt ruling stemming from its 2020 lawsuit with Epic Games over App Store fees and payment restrictions. A federal judge found Apple in contempt in 2025 for charging developers up to 27% fees on external payment links, which courts ruled violated the "spirit" of an earlier order requiring Apple to allow apps to link to alternative payment options. Apple argues it cannot be held in contempt for violating an injunction's "spirit" rather tha...

A ransomware attack on Tata Electronics, a key Apple supplier, resulted in over 200,000 files being leaked to the dark web, including detailed component lists, supplier information, and images of the unreleased iPhone 18 Pro. The breach exposed sensitive supply chain data for Apple and other clients including Tesla, with documents revealing hundreds of suppliers and technical specifications for upcoming products. This leak threatens Apple's tightly controlled manufacturing secrecy and could p...

Apple agreed to pay $250 million to settle a shareholder lawsuit alleging the company misled customers by advertising AI features for iPhone 16 and iPhone 15 Pro models that weren't available at launch. Customers who purchased eligible devices between June 10, 2024, and March 29, 2025, can claim payments between $25 and $95 per device once a settlement administrator sends notices with claim instructions. The lawsuit centered on Apple Intelligence features that were heavily promoted but didn't...

Apple announced new parental control tools that will require children under 13 to have a child account with built-in age-based restrictions, including limits on websites, media access, and app downloads. Parents will be guided through setting up these accounts when configuring new devices and can customize which apps their children can access, with options ranging from essential apps only to broader selections. The features, launching in fall software updates, build on Apple's existing parent...

Apple will require new users in Texas to verify they are over 18 starting June 4th, using a credit card or government ID, following a federal appeals court decision allowing the state's App Store Accountability Act to take effect. Users under 18 must join a Family Sharing group where parents or guardians approve app downloads and purchases. This affects anyone creating a new Apple account in Texas and follows similar age verification rollouts in Utah, Louisiana, Brazil, Australia, Singapore, ...

Apple has begun enforcing age verification requirements for App Store users in Texas, following the implementation of state law SB 2420. New Apple accounts created in Texas must verify users' ages, and parents or guardians must provide consent for minors to download apps, install updates, or make in-app purchases. The law, signed last May but delayed by legal challenges from its original January 1 effective date, is now taking effect.

Apple has released quantum-resistant encryption code and verification tools to the public, including implementations of two quantum-secure algorithms now used across its 2.5 billion devices in services like iMessage and VPNs. The release includes formal verification tools that use mathematical proofs to ensure code correctness, which caught a critical error in digital signature code that conventional testing missed and could have falsely authenticated iMessage communications. This matters bec...

Apple has agreed to pay $250 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging the company misled customers about the availability of Apple Intelligence features, particularly an enhanced Siri, when marketing the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. US customers who purchased these devices between June 2024 and March 2025 can claim $25 to $95 per device, depending on claim volume. Apple denied wrongdoing but settled to avoid prolonged litigation over advertisements that promoted AI capabilitie...

India's antitrust regulator is pursuing a case against Apple over alleged monopolistic practices in the App Store, requiring developers to use Apple's proprietary in-app purchase system. Apple has refused to submit financial data needed to calculate potential penalties, which could reach up to $38 billion, with a final hearing scheduled for May 21. The case highlights ongoing tensions between Apple and Indian regulators over market dominance and compliance with local requirements.

Apple withholds data in India antitrust case, watchdog sets final hearing

Three prominent YouTubers filed a class-action lawsuit against Apple in April 2026, alleging the company illegally scraped their copyrighted YouTube videos to train AI models without compensation. The lawsuit claims Apple bypassed standard streaming protocols to access the content, part of a broader legal campaign by these creators against multiple tech companies including Meta, Nvidia, ByteDance, and Snap. If successful, the case could force tech companies to change how they source training ...

Apple Distribution International, the company's Ireland-based subsidiary, was fined £390,000 by UK authorities for breaching sanctions against Russia by making two payments totaling over £635,000 to streaming service Okko, which was owned by a sanctioned Russian entity. The payments were made through a UK bank account in June and July 2022, after Okko's owner JSC New Opportunities had been placed under UK sanctions. The case demonstrates that non-UK companies can face penalties for sanctions ...

Apple confirms ads are coming to Apple Maps

The European Commission fined Apple €500 million for violating the Digital Markets Act by preventing app developers from steering users to alternative purchasing channels outside the App Store. Apple was ordered to remove the anti-steering restrictions within 60 days. Apple announced it would formally appeal the fine.

Apple disabled Advanced Data Protection for iCloud in the United Kingdom after the UK government demanded backdoor access to encrypted user data under the Investigatory Powers Act. New UK users can no longer enable the feature, and existing users were required to disable it. Apple stated it would 'never build a backdoor' but complied by withdrawing the feature entirely rather than weakening its encryption.

Apple agreed to pay $95 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging that Siri recorded users' conversations without their knowledge or consent, and that some recordings were shared with third-party contractors for review. The settlement covered owners of Siri- enabled devices purchased between September 2014 and December 2024, with eligible claimants receiving up to $20 per device for a maximum of five devices.

Apple unveiled Apple Intelligence at WWDC 2024, emphasizing a privacy-first approach to generative AI. The system processes most requests on-device using Apple silicon, and when cloud processing is needed, routes data through Private Cloud Compute - custom Apple silicon servers with a hardened OS that cryptographically guarantees user data is not stored, logged, or accessible to Apple after fulfilling a request.

Apple began enforcing privacy manifest requirements for all new and updated App Store submissions. Apps and third-party SDKs were required to include privacy manifest files declaring data collection practices and providing approved reasons for using listed APIs. Submissions that failed to include valid privacy manifests were rejected by App Store Connect.

Apple announced sweeping changes to iOS, Safari, and the App Store in the European Union to comply with the Digital Markets Act. The changes, effective in March 2024, allowed sideloading apps through alternative app marketplaces, alternative browser engines not based on WebKit, and alternative payment processing. Apple introduced a new fee structure including a 'Core Technology Fee' of €0.50 per annual app install above one million.

Apple tightened App Store privacy rules, requiring developers using certain APIs to provide approved justifications or face app rejection. The updated guidelines specifically targeted fingerprinting techniques that apps and SDKs used to covertly track users by accessing device signals like disk space, boot time, and active keyboards without a legitimate purpose.

At WWDC 2023, Apple announced privacy manifests and required reason APIs, mandating that developers declare exactly what data their apps and third-party SDKs collect and justify their use of sensitive system APIs. Apple also introduced enhanced Safari tracking protections and Private Browsing that locks automatically when the browser is not in use.

Apple officially abandoned its controversial plan to scan iCloud Photos for CSAM, stating that 'children can be protected without companies combing through personal data.' The reversal followed over a year of sustained criticism from privacy researchers, civil liberties groups, and cryptography experts who argued the system could be exploited for broader surveillance.

Apple introduced Advanced Data Protection for iCloud, extending end-to-end encryption to 23 data categories including iCloud Backup, Photos, Notes, and iCloud Drive. With the feature enabled, only the user's trusted devices hold the encryption keys, meaning Apple itself cannot access the data even if compelled by law enforcement or in the event of a cloud breach.

Apple announced Lockdown Mode, an extreme security feature designed to protect users targeted by state-sponsored mercenary spyware such as NSO Group's Pegasus. Lockdown Mode strictly limits attack surfaces by blocking most message attachment types, disabling link previews, restricting web technologies, and preventing unknown device connections. It shipped with iOS 16 in September 2022.

Apple began enforcing a new App Store requirement that all apps supporting account creation must also provide an in-app option for users to delete their account and associated personal data. Apps failing to comply were rejected or removed from the App Store. The requirement, originally announced in January 2022, was extended to June 30 to give developers more time to implement the feature.

Apple launched Communication Safety in Messages in the United States with iOS 15.2, which detects and blurs sexually explicit images sent to or by children's accounts in family groups. Unlike the shelved CSAM scanning proposal, Communication Safety processes images entirely on-device and does not report to Apple or law enforcement.

Apple released iOS 15 with Mail Privacy Protection, which prevents email senders from using invisible tracking pixels to determine whether and when users open emails, and hides users' IP addresses. The feature disrupted the email marketing industry's reliance on open rate metrics by preloading email content through proxy servers regardless of whether the user actually opened the message.

Apple announced plans to scan iCloud Photos for known child sexual abuse material (CSAM) using on-device hash matching before upload, along with Communication Safety features for Messages. The CSAM scanning proposal drew immediate backlash from privacy advocates, security researchers, and civil liberties organizations who warned it could be repurposed for government surveillance.

At WWDC 2021, Apple announced iCloud+, a premium subscription tier bundling iCloud Private Relay and Hide My Email with existing storage plans. Private Relay routes Safari traffic through two separate relays so neither Apple nor network providers can see both who a user is and what sites they visit. Hide My Email generates unique, random email addresses that forward to the user's personal inbox.

Apple launched App Tracking Transparency (ATT) with iOS 14.5, requiring all apps to obtain explicit user permission before tracking their activity across other companies' apps and websites. Studies showed the majority of users opted out of tracking, significantly disrupting the mobile advertising industry and costing platforms like Meta billions in lost ad revenue.

Apple began requiring all apps submitted to the App Store to include privacy nutrition labels disclosing what data they collect, how it is used, and whether it is linked to users' identities. The labels appear on each app's App Store listing, giving users transparency before downloading.