Apple will scan iCloud items shared via public links for harmful content from iOS 27.3

Sharing an iCloud photo or file through a public link will soon mean Apple looks at it too. Starting with version 27.3 of iOS, iPadOS, macOS and visionOS, anything shared with the “Anyone with the Link” option will be checked by Apple for harmful content, according to a new Apple support document.

The most striking detail is what happens to encryption. Apple says an item shared this way is no longer end-to-end encrypted, even if its owner has switched on Advanced Data Protection, the setting meant to keep iCloud data out of Apple’s reach. As Heise notes, that means the user’s own keys are used to unlock the file so Apple can inspect it and serve it through the link.

The rule is narrow. It covers only links that work for anyone who has them; sharing with “People you choose” or sending a copy of a file to a specific person is not affected. Heise spotted the change alongside the developer betas of the 27.3 updates, and Apple’s page is dated November 3.

The consequences are spelled out more clearly than the target. If harmful content is found, Apple says it can move, refuse, modify, remove or delete it at any time, block or disable the Apple Account, stop the same email address or phone number from being used for a new account and, if necessary, involve law enforcement. The document never defines “harmful content”; Heise points out that the term usually refers to child sexual abuse material.

For a company that sells privacy as a feature, this is a notable carve-out, though a tightly scoped one: private shares stay as they were. What Apple has not said is how the checks work, whether people will be told when a shared item is flagged, or when 27.3 reaches everyone outside the beta.

Reported by Apple Support, Heise. Compiled with AI tools.