Apple Will Scan iCloud Public Links for Harmful Content in iOS 27.3

Apple has quietly changed what happens when you share an iCloud file with a public link. Starting with iOS 27.3 and its companion updates, anything you share through iCloud public links set to "Anyone with the link" will be checked by Apple for harmful content. The change is spelled out in a new Apple support document dated November 3, and it applies to iOS, iPadOS, macOS and visionOS version 27.3 or later.

The first iOS 27.3 beta arrived this week, so most people will not see the change until the public release. Still, it is worth knowing now, because the two sharing options in iCloud will no longer behave the same way when it comes to privacy.

Two ways to share an iCloud item, and only one gets checked

When you share something stored in iCloud, such as a photo in iCloud Photos or a file in iCloud Drive, Apple gives you a choice between sharing a link or sending a copy. If you share a link, you then decide who can open it. That decision is where iOS 27.3 draws its line.

People you choose

This is the private option. Only the people you invite can open the item. Apple's new document does not say these shares will be scanned, and it does not describe any change to how they work. If you send family photos to a few relatives this way, nothing in Apple's description suggests a difference after the update.

Anyone with the link

This is the open option. Whoever has the link can open the item, and Apple's support page points out that this includes Apple itself. From version 27.3 on, items shared this way "will be checked by Apple for harmful content," according to the document. 9to5Mac, which first reported the change, described it the same way: the public link option is the one that now gets reviewed.

Advanced Data Protection does not cover public links

The most important detail sits in one sentence of Apple's document. When you share an item with Anyone with the link, that item is no longer end to end encrypted, even if you or the other participants have turned on Advanced Data Protection.

That matters because many people turn on Advanced Data Protection precisely so Apple cannot read their iCloud data. A public link sits outside that protection by design, which is worth remembering if you follow a privacy checklist for your accounts. Apple explains it as a requirement of the sharing itself: to let anyone open the file, the file has to be readable by more than just you. The new scanning builds on that fact. Since Apple can already access a publicly linked item, it will now look at it.

So the practical comparison looks like this:

• People you choose: limited to invited people, no scanning described by Apple
• Anyone with the link: open to anyone holding the link, not end to end encrypted even with Advanced Data Protection on, and checked by Apple for harmful content from version 27.3

What Apple says it can do if content is flagged

Apple's wording on enforcement is broad. If someone tries to upload harmful content, the company says it "reserves the right to move, refuse, modify, remove, or delete the content at any time." It may also act against the Apple Account involved. The document lists blocking or disabling the account, blocking the email address or phone number from being used to create a new Apple Account, and, if necessary, involving law enforcement.

Apple does not say how the checking works, what systems it uses, or exactly how it defines harmful content. The support page also notes that not all features are available in all countries or regions. Neither Apple's document nor 9to5Mac's report mentions Notes or Messages, so the change as described is about shared iCloud items like Photos and Drive files.

Which option fits which kind of sharer

For most people, the choice comes down to who needs to open the file.

If you share personal photos, scanned documents or anything sensitive, use People you choose. It keeps the share limited, and it is the option that stays inside the protections you set up for your account. This is the same habit that helps after a data breach: keep sensitive files in the narrowest place that still works.

If you post files for a wide audience, such as a flyer, a public portfolio or a class handout, the public link is still the easy choice. Just treat anything shared that way as visible to Apple, and do not put private details in it.

If you already have old public links sitting in iCloud, now is a good time to review them. Shared items you no longer need can be switched to invited people only or stopped altogether. It is a small cleanup, similar to checking which apps can reach your Google account.

iOS 27.3 is also bringing other changes, including the Live Rewind and Siri Recap features on Apple Watch in the matching watchOS beta, and storage use for Apple features keeps growing, as seen in the iOS 27 Apple Intelligence storage jump. For more on Apple and the rest of the industry, see our tech coverage.

One open question remains: Apple has not said whether links created before the update will be checked once a device moves to 27.3, so anyone with long running public shares may want to tidy them up before the release lands.