Apple will check anything you share by public iCloud link

If you share a file or photo from iCloud with a link anyone can open, Apple will soon look at it too. From the 27.3 updates for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Vision Pro, those items will be checked for harmful content.

Apple published the change on its support site on 3 November. It gives photos in iCloud Photos and files in iCloud Drive as examples.

Only one kind of link is affected

iCloud gives you two ways to share. Send a Copy sends the file itself. Share a Link lets people open it from iCloud.

A link has two settings:

• People you choose. Only people you invite or approve can open it.
• Anyone with the link. Anyone who has the link can open it. Apple’s page notes that this includes Apple.

Only the second setting gets the new check.

Apple doesn’t define harmful content on the page. It also doesn’t say how the check works or whether links made before 27.3 are included.

What happens if something is flagged

Apple’s warning is blunt. If you upload harmful content, it says it can move, refuse, change, remove or delete it at any time.

It can also act against your Apple Account. That includes disabling the account and blocking a new account with the same email address or phone number. If necessary, it may involve law enforcement.

The point to remember: a public link is not a private channel.

Public links were never end-to-end encrypted

The check doesn’t remove a protection that public links had. Apple’s security overview already says “Anyone with the link” sharing doesn’t support Advanced Data Protection. The encryption keys sit with Apple so the item can be shown on the web.

Shared iCloud Drive folders are different. They stay end-to-end encrypted when every participant has Advanced Data Protection turned on. Shared Albums in Photos don’t support it.

So if a document is sensitive, such as a client’s contract or a staff member’s payslip, a public link was already the weaker choice. The new check is one more reason to use invitations instead.

How to switch an iCloud Drive file to invite-only

For files and folders in iCloud Drive on an iPhone, Apple’s guide puts the setting here:

1. Open the Files app and go to the shared file or folder.
2. Touch and hold it, then tap Manage Shared File or Manage Shared Folder.
3. Tap Sharing Options.
4. Change access from Anyone with the link to People you choose.

The old link then stops working for everyone. Only people you send a new invitation to can open the item. With People you choose, you can also turn on Access Requests, so someone with the link can ask you for access.

To share something new privately, touch and hold it in Files and tap the Share button. Tap the menu under the item’s title, tap Share a Link, then pick People you choose before you send it.

If you’re tightening up an iPhone used for work, our guide to seven iPhone settings to change before you use it for work covers the rest.

When it starts

The 27.3 updates are with developers for beta testing now. Apple’s page gives no release date. MacRumors expects the public release in December.

Checklist

• Find your shared files. In the Files app, tap Shared, then check each item’s Sharing Options for Anyone with the link.
• Switch sensitive files to People you choose. Use Manage Shared File, then Sharing Options, and send fresh invitations to the people who still need access.
• Stop sharing what’s finished. Use Manage Shared File, then Stop Sharing, so old links stop working.
• Pick People you choose for new shares. Choose it under Share a Link before you send client documents or staff records.
• Use Send a Copy for one-off files. It sends the file itself rather than a link to your iCloud.
• Treat public links as public. Only use Anyone with the link for things you’d be comfortable with anyone, including Apple, seeing.