| Cult of Mac

Fix the mess caused by Sign in with Apple and Hide My Email

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Silence the spam
Apple’s privacy-focused features in Mail are really handy at keeping spam at bay, but you might still need to find that secret email address or delete an account after a while.
Image: Ascánder/Wikimedia Commons/D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

I always use Apple’s privacy-focused Sign in with Apple and Hide My Email services whenever I get the option.

The Sign in with Apple feature, which lets you log into third-party accounts using your Apple ID while keeping your personal info private, is so easy to use that I utilize it everywhere. But that also means my disguised logins pile up, accumulating in the digital junk drawer that is iCloud Settings.

I’ll show you where you can find, manage or delete these accounts. Perhaps you’re jumping ship from iPhone to Android, and you want to make sure you still have another way of signing into your Chipotle account.

The Hide My Email service is similar. It creates a temporary email address that forwards to your real one — handy if you’re signing up for a shady website, or if you need a public contact email. I’ll show you where you can create new ones and delete the old ones.

Learn to protect your kids online with a free class from Apple

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Child with iPad
iPad and iPhone have free tools to help protects kids online. Apple offers a class on how to use them.
Photo: Apple

February 7 is Safer Internet Day, and parents can take part by signing up for Apple’s “Your Kids and Their Devices” class. it shows parents how to maintain the online privacy of children who use iPhone or iPad.

The class is free and available online or in person around the world.

No, Apple isn’t spying on the files in your Mac

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MacBook Pro with cryptographic nonsense on the display
Is Apple spying on your private files? Betteridge’s Law prevails once again.
Photo: mikemacmarketing/Wikimedia Commons

Claims that Apple is phoning home to analyze every image on your Mac have been proven false. Jeffrey Paul, security researcher and consultant, claimed early last week that his Mac was sending small bits of data to Apple every time he clicked on an image on his computer.

After Paul’s claims caused a bit of a stir, researchers got to the bottom of what was actually happening. Not only did they conclude the network activity was innocent — it was caused by a bug that’s already been patched in the latest macOS update.

Ted Lasso star puts human face on privacy in new Apple video

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Actor Nick Muhammed -- aka Nate on
Actor Nick Muhammed -- aka Nate on "Ted Lasso" -- makes learning about iPhone privacy features fun.
Photo: Apple

Marking Data Privacy Day on Tuesday, Apple introduced new educational resources meant to help users take better control of their data, including a whimsical short film starring one of Ted Lasso‘s popular cast members.

The video, a new Today at Apple Session and Cupertino’s added statements on its ongoing security efforts come amid ever-rising cyberattacks and about a month after the company released Advanced Data Protection.

How to make iCloud more secure with Advanced Data Protection

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You now have the option to have more of your iCloud files encrypted, including images. Here's how.
The latest versions of Apple's operating systems give you the option to encrypt more of your iCloud files, including images.
Photo: Cult of Mac

Apple recently added end-to-end encryption for more types of iCloud data. Now, you can turn on Advanced Data Protection to encrypt iCloud Photos, Notes and more. Activating this new security feature is easy … once you find the switch buried in Settings.

We can save you some time. Here’s how and why you should activate it.

Get a fantastic Black Friday deal on secure Private Internet Access VPN

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Private Internet Access gives you the secure VPN you need for safe web surfing.
Private Internet Access gives you the secure VPN you need for safe web surfing.
Photo: Private Internet Access

An encrypted virtual private network is one of the best ways to keep your online activities completely private. Plus, a VPN also can open up access to restricted content all over the world.

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Apple apps secretly track users, lawsuit claims

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Read Epic Games' reasonable idea for opening up the App Store
A proposed class-action lawsuit claims Apple applications, including the App Store, surreptitiously track users.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

A class-action lawsuit filed in California alleges that, “Apple’s assurances and promises regarding privacy are utterly false.”

The lawsuit is based on the work of a security researcher who claims that many of Apple’s own applications send detailed analytics information to the developer even after users ask them to stop.

Cloudflare goes all in on Apple’s CAPTCHA alternative

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Apple Automatic Verification will help save us from CAPTCHA hassles
Apple users may be freed from CAPTCHA with the help of Cloudflare's Turnstile.
Image: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Apple’s Automatic Verification system for websites is getting a big boost from Cloudflare. The web security company just unveiled Turnstile, a free alternative to those irritating CAPTCHA image tests. This has Apple’s system built in.

Turnstile, now in open beta testing, is available to anyone, not just Cloudflare customers.

Why you should never use the browser in Facebook and Instagram

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Why you should never use the browser in Facebook and Instagram
You can always count on Meta apps to suck up as much users data as possible.
Graphic: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

The web browser that Meta built into the iPhone Facebook and Instagram applications can collect far more information about users than they probably realize. It can “track every single interaction with external websites,” according to a developer.

But users don’t have to stay in this sketchy browser. Leaving it is easy – here’s how.

Use Hushed to get a second phone number for burner calls

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Don't cell your phone privacy short and get this app for a second private phone number.
Call off the random texts and unwelcome calls by using a Hushed private phone line.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Sometimes you need to call co-workers, businesses, Craigslist sellers all sorts of people you might not want having access to your personal number and the ability to reach you at all hours of the day. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with wanting a little privacy, and with a Hushed Private Phone Line, you can get that privacy without getting a whole new iPhone. For a limited time, this app which functionally gives you a second phone number is on sale for $24.99 (Reg. $150).