Gardner also questioned why Apple hasn’t removed Grok, which was still hosting sex-heavy celebrities as recently as June, from its App Store.
“When someone points out that these apps are targeting teenagers or creating child sexual abuse materials, they choose to quietly remove them from the App Store without making any announcement about it, so their conflict with the App Store is really obvious,” Gardner said.
Apple says nudity apps are against its guidelines, and has consistently rejected many and removed others, including those people flagged through the App Store’s reporting tools. The company did not say why the Grok is still available on the platform.
Regarding the fact that Apple still wants to use CSAM detection technology, Apple pointed to its Communication Security feature, which blocks images and videos containing nudity, violent content, or hacking in various applications. (Automatically enabled for users under 18.) The company will also make a new function available to report these types of content. Users in Australia, Brazil, the US, and the UK will get it first, with expanded availability coming to other regions later.
“We have a long-standing commitment to building a safe and reliable platform for children, and we provide many of the best tools in the industry that help keep them safe while protecting their privacy,” Apple said.
Anunay Kulshrestha, an applied cryptographer and information security consultant at the Infosec Clinic, says that Apple’s CSAM implementation lacks accountability guarantees. He doesn’t think Apple’s usage today would be better than what the company was charging three years ago. “The government can pressure Apple to add something to the non-CSAM set, and Apple has been known to give in to governments,” Kulshrestha said.
What Apple Is Changing
So what can you expect later this year in iOS 27, iPadOS 27, and macOS 27? Let’s break down some of the new developments and capabilities.
Courtesy of Apple
Updates to Child Accounts
The process for opening a child account has been changed, as Apple says it should take about six minutes to set up. It is required for children under the age of 13 and is available for children up to the age of 18. This process includes restricting websites for adults, setting up age-appropriate media, and applying age-based restrictions to the App Store.
Parents can also choose which apps kids can access on the device—there’s an option to start with a few essential apps, a curated set, or choose apps manually. (You can add more apps later.)
Request a Browsing
Courtesy of Apple
Request Browsing is new to Safari; if enabled, children must ask permission from parents to visit a new website in the browser. It works in the same way as the Ask to Buy from the App Store function (where kids have to ask for permission to buy or install new apps). If they ask for permission, a message is sent to the parent’s device via Messages.
Authorize New Contacts
Courtesy of Apple
By default, kids need to ask for permission before saving or communicating with a new contact on Phone, FaceTime, or the Messages app. Parents will receive a message asking for approval, which they can deny or allow on the spot.
Communication Security Updates
Apple’s existing Communication Safety feature automatically detects and obscures nudity in Messages, FaceTime, and AirDrop for users under 18. This has now been expanded to include content that contains horror or graphic violence, and Apple says it also works in Shared Photo Albums, Contact Posters, and the Contacts app.
Time Allowances and Custom Plans
Apple says it’s working with the American Academy of Pediatrics and its Family Media Plan as a reference point for parents and their children’s digital health. That’s why Time Allowances have suggestions for how much time kids should spend on certain app categories based on their age, such as Entertainment, Games, or Social Media.
Parents can customize these allowances, and there are daily schedules that allow you to allow groups of apps at specific times of the day or week. For example, parents can block game apps during school hours. And if you want your child off their phone during dinner, parents can pause device access with their own device. Overall, the Screen Time interface has been redesigned for an at-a-glance look that shows the average usage of a child’s device and the most used apps.
Some Small Improvements
- Screen Time Passcode Notifications: You can set a notification every time a Screen Time passcode is entered on a child’s device.
- User Reporting Tools: Apple says the new reporting tool is available in Australia, Brazil, the US, and the UK (more regions to come), making it easier for users to report CSAM or other bugs.
- Child Safety Website: Apple has a dedicated website that uses the latest tools with helpful resources and answers to common questions.
