Apple security and privacy engineers thwarted Pegasus. It was just one of their successes this year. Fast Company’s Harry McCracken speaks with Apple engineers who are creating innovative ways to protect users from a wide array of threats. Harry McCracken for Fast Company: For years, Apple has made privacy and security one of the iPhone’s principal selling points. But a fraction of users—including dissidents, activists, and journalists—have reason to obsess over it. Governments and others with ill intent have targeted these groups with sophisticated spyware to gain access to messages, location data, and other information that can compromise not just privacy but their physical safety. “These are attackers who are willing to spend untold millions and millions and millions of…

Apple is the Online Safety Bill as it could be used to force encrypted messaging tools like iMessage, WhatsApp, Signal and other to scan messages for, ostensibly, child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Apple’s opposition comes as 80 organizations and tech experts have written to UK Technology Minister Chloe Smith urging a rethink. Chris Vallance for The Beeb: Apple told the BBC the bill should be amended to protect encryption. Police, the government and some high-profile child protection charities maintain the tech – used in apps such as WhatsApp and Apple’s iMessage – prevents law enforcement and the firms themselves from identifying the sharing of child sexual abuse material. But in a statement Apple said: “End-to-end encryption is a critical capability…

Apple today seeded the fourth betas of upcoming iOS 16.6 and iPadOS 16.6 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the software coming over two weeks after the release of the third betas. Registered developers can opt in to the betas by opening up the Settings app, going to Software Update, tapping on the “Beta Updates” option and toggling on the iOS 16 Developer Beta. Note that an Apple ID associated with a developer account is required to download and install the beta. iOS 16.6 and iPadOS 16.6 lay the groundwork for iMessage Contact Key Verification. It is meant to let Apple device owners verify that they are messaging with the people they intend to message rather than a malicious…

Illustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge Apple has become the latest operator of an encrypted messaging service to raise concerns about the UK’s Online Safety Bill, BBC News reports. “End-to-end encryption is a critical capability that protects the privacy of journalists, human rights activists, and diplomats. It also helps everyday citizens defend themselves from surveillance, identity theft, fraud, and data breaches,” a statement reads. “The Online Safety Bill poses a serious threat to this protection, and could put UK citizens at greater risk.” With its statement, Apple joins the likes of WhatsApp and Signal in opposing a provision that would allow communications regulator Ofcom to call on tech companies to use “accredited technology” to identify child sexual abuse content…

One of the many features of the Apple Vision Pro spatial computer is its ability to transform any room into a cinema. With just a turn of the Vision Pro’s dial, you can create a virtual cinema environment that will make you feel like you’re sitting in the best seat in the house. According to FlatpanelsHD, there are 13 different virtual cinema environments from which to choose, each with its own unique atmosphere. Apple Vision Pro features an ultra-high-resolution display system that packs 23 million pixels across two displays — more than a 4K TV for each eye — and the brand-new R1 chip, for a virtually lag-free, real-time view of the world. Rasmus Larsen for FlatpanelsHD: In addition to…

With iOS 16, iPadOS 16, and macOS Ventura last year, Apple introduced Lockdown Mode, an optional security setting designed to protect the "very small number" of users who may be at risk of "highly targeted cyberattacks" from companies developing state-sponsored spyware, such as journalists, activists, and government employees. Starting with iOS 17 and watchOS 10, enabling Lockdown Mode on an iPhone also turns on Lockdown Mode on a paired Apple Watch. Apple says Lockdown Mode provides an "extreme" level of security, with strict limitations on apps, websites, and features. At launch, Lockdown Mode included the following protections:In the Messages app, most message attachment types other than images are blocked, and some features like link previews are unavailable. Incoming FaceTime calls…