Apple Plans to Change Its Hide My Email Privacy Feature, Potentially Reducing Effectiveness
Apple is changing its Hide My Email feature by moving from @icloud.com to @private.icloud.com, making it easier for apps and websites to detect and block anonymous sign-ups.
Apple announced on Monday that it will make changes to its Hide My Email privacy feature, which allows paying iCloud+ subscribers to generate anonymous email addresses to protect their real inboxes when signing up for online services. The company plans to shift the domain of newly generated addresses from @icloud.com to @private.icloud.com, a move that could make it easier for apps and websites to identify and block anonymous registrations.
Currently, Hide My Email creates addresses under the @icloud.com domain, making them indistinguishable from regular Apple users’ emails. Apple stated in a note to developers that the change will happen in the coming weeks. Existing anonymous addresses will continue to forward messages without interruption, but app and email providers will need to update their filtering systems to ensure uninterrupted delivery.
Users on Reddit criticized the change, arguing it undermines the privacy purpose of the feature. Apple did not respond to TechCrunch’s request for comment regarding the rationale behind the change.
This update comes amid broader efforts by the Trump administration over the past year to unmask anonymous accounts, including those of Trump’s critics, by issuing subpoenas to tech companies for user information. Earlier this year, TechCrunch reported that Apple provided real account information of a user who sent an allegedly threatening email via Hide My Email to the girlfriend of FBI Director Kash Patel.
