Apple Hide My Email privacy may weaken with future updates: Report
Follow UsApple will soon generate new Hide My Email addresses using the @private.icloud.com domain.
Existing Hide My Email addresses will continue to work without any changes.
Some users worry the new domain could make private email addresses easier for apps and websites to identify.
Apple is reportedly making a small but significant change to its Hide My Email feature, and some users are unhappy about it. The feature lets iCloud+ subscribers generate temporary email addresses when signing up for apps and websites, allowing them to keep their personal email private. Similar to disposable email services, Hide My Email creates unique addresses, but messages sent to them are automatically forwarded to the user’s inbox, helping reduce spam and protect privacy. However, the Cupertino tech giant has recently announced that the feature will use a new email domain, @private.icloud.com. They further added that the update will not affect existing users or functionality of the Hide My Email feature.
SurveyIn a note shared with developers this week, Apple said that newly generated Hide My Email addresses will move from the current @icloud.com format to the new @private.icloud.com domain in the coming weeks.
The company stressed that existing anonymous email addresses will continue to work normally. Emails sent to those addresses will still be forwarded without interruption, and users will not need to take any action.
Also read: Apple anniversary iPhones may launch with these new big changes
Apple has also asked app developers and email service providers to update their email filtering systems so that messages sent to users using Hide My Email continue to be delivered properly and do not end up being blocked or lost in spam folders.
Hide My Email is one of the most loved features provided by Apple, as it helps users prevent spam emails. Moreover, it also protects them from identity theft or avoids revealing their true personal e-mail addresses while registering on different applications or websites. The reason is that a random email address will be created and used for forwarding purposes.
Also read: Android 17 update is here: What is new, how to download and how you access
However, some users still have concerns about the upcoming changes, as with the update all anonymous email addresses will now use a more clearly recognisable domain structure. While this may help improve delivery and reduce email filtering issues, it could also make these addresses easier to spot. And as a result of this, apps and websites may be able to identify when someone is using a private or masked email address during sign-up. In some cases they might even decide to limit or block accounts created with such emails.
