APPLEHAS ANNOUNCED three new child protection features, coming later this year in updates to iOS 15, iPadOS 15, watchOS 8, and macOS Monterey. However, objectors say the measures breach user privacy and open a door for unregulated surveillance.
The first feature is aimed at children under the age of 13 in an iCloud Family group: The Messages app will be able to warn them when they receive or send sexually explicit photos, and, if they choose to go ahead and view or send, alert their parent. The feature uses on–device machine learning to analyze image attachments and determine if a photo is sexually explicit. Apple does not gain access to any of the messages. The feature requires opt–in, and applies only to accounts set up as families in iCloud.