Enhancing user data security: Apple introduces robust new safeguards
Apple is bolstering its commitment to user security by introducing three new features: Advanced Data Protection for iCloud, Security Keys for Apple ID, and iMessage Contact Key Verification. These optional enhancements are designed to provide users with additional tools to protect their most sensitive data and communications, especially for those facing extraordinary digital threats.
Advanced Data Protection for iCloud, available in the US today for members of the Apple Beta Software Program, offers Apple's highest level of cloud data security. This feature uses end-to-end encryption to protect the vast majority of users' iCloud data, including iCloud Backup, Photos, Notes, and more. By the end of the year, this feature will be available to all US users, and it will start rolling out to the rest of the world in early 2023. With Advanced Data Protection, the total number of data categories protected using end-to-end encryption rises to 23.
iCloud already protects 14 sensitive data categories using end-to-end encryption by default, including passwords in iCloud Keychain and Health data. The addition of Advanced Data Protection further strengthens this protection, keeping most iCloud data protected even in the case of a data breach in the cloud.
Security Keys for Apple ID allows users to require a physical security key to sign in to their Apple ID account. This feature, which will be available globally in early 2023, adds an extra layer of protection against unauthorised access. Apple has also introduced a new feature called Security Keys, allowing users to use third-party hardware security keys to enhance two-factor authentication.
iMessage Contact Key Verification is designed to verify that users are communicating only with whom they intend. This feature, which will be available globally in 2023, helps to prevent impersonation and ensure the privacy of users' conversations.
The technical details of these optional security enhancements can be found in Apple's Platform Security Guide. Apple is committed to strengthening both device and cloud security, and to adding new protections over time.
A new summary of data breach research, "The Rising Threat to Consumer Data in the Cloud," published today, highlights the growing threat to consumer data in the cloud. The technical details of this report suggest that the total number of data breaches more than tripled between 2013 and 2021, exposing 1.1 billion personal records across the globe in 2021 alone. These new features from Apple aim to provide users with the tools they need to protect their data in this increasingly challenging environment.
Security Keys for Apple ID will be available globally in early 2023, while iMessage Contact Key Verification will follow later in the year. The specific global availability dates for Advanced Data Protection for iCloud have not been announced yet. However, users can look forward to these new features as part of Apple's ongoing efforts to prioritise user security and privacy.
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