Apple CEO Tim Cook was spotted in Washington DC today where he met with lawmakers to push back against proposed App Store age policy. more…

Apple CEO Tim Cook was in Washington, D.C. today to meet with US lawmakers about the upcoming App Store Accountability Act, reports Bloomberg. The App Store Accountability Act would require Apple to verify a person's age when an Apple Account is created using a "commercially available method or process," and get parental consent for each app that a child under 16 downloads. Apple is against the ‌App Store‌ Accountability Act because it does not want to be legally responsible for verifying user age, obtaining parental consent, or ensuring that developers follow the rules, nor does it want to collect the required documentation. It is Apple's opinion that age verification should be the responsibility of app creators. Cook pushed lawmakers not to require app store platforms to collect data for age verification purposes, instead suggesting that parents should be providing the age of a child when creating a child's account (which is how account creation works now). To head off legislation, Apple has introduced new age assurance features, such as simpler tools for parents to oversee children's Apple accounts, new age categories for app content, and the Declared Age Range API that provides developers with a privacy-forward way to ensure kids aren't exposed to in-app content meant for adults. Apple has argued that it already has extensive parental controls with Screen Time, and that the legislation would require it to collect excessive amounts of information from all users just to verify the age of children. Apple says that it could be required to collect data like a driver's license, passport, or Social Security number, which is "not in the interest of user safety or privacy." The House Energy and Commerce Committee will consider the bill on Thursday morning. Texas recently passed a similar bill, SB2420. Starting on January 1, 2026, Apple users located in Texas will need to confirm whether they are 18 years or older when creating an Apple Account. Apple will need to verify age and parental identity, and the ‌App Store‌ will need to provide additional information to parents.Tags: App Store, Tim Cook This article, "Tim Cook Goes to Washington to Fight App Store Age Verification Legislation" first appeared on MacRumors.com Discuss this article in our forums

You almost have to feel sorry for Alan Dye at this point. It was pretty clear he expected news of his departure from Apple to be something of a bombshell, and Meta clearly thought their acquisition of Apple’s former VP of Human Interface Design would be perceived as a coup. Instead, the prevailing opinion among Apple commenters appears to be succinctly summarized as a collective sigh of relief … more…

Google Maps has recently rolled out a change where, at least on iOS, the app will automatically detect that you’ve parked your vehicle and save that location, and it will also now show it with a custom icon. more…

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ICEBlock creator sues to protect apps that are crowd-sourcing ICE sightings.

The controversy over Apple removing ICEBlock from the App Store is showing no signs of ending. The latest development is a former Apple marketing veteran challenging Tim Cook on the company’s human rights values. Wiley Hodges worked for Apple for more than 20 years, the last 15 of them as a director of marketing and product management, and he’s written an open letter to Cook expressing his dismay at the decision … more…

Apple has quietly added a protective silicone ring to its in-store MagSafe charging stands following reports of marks appearing on some iPhone 17 series display models, according to Consomac. The apparent move comes after Apple last month confirmed that worn MagSafe chargers in retail stores were causing what appeared to be scratches on the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max. There have also been reports of the marks appearing on iPhone Air models. Apple said the marks were actually material transfer from the stand to the phone, and could be removed with cleaning. The company also noted that other models like the iPhone 16 were affected by the problem. It's currently unclear whether the in-store display change is localized to France, where the Consomac report originates, or if it's just a snapshot of a more widespread rollout to Apple retail stores in other countries. Separately, Apple has addressed concerns about scratching on the camera plateau area of the iPhone 17 Pro models, saying the edges have similar characteristics to aluminum cases on other Apple devices, like MacBooks, and may show normal wear and tear over time. (Thanks, Sylvain!)Related Roundup: iPhone 17 ProTag: ConsomacBuyer's Guide: iPhone 17 Pro (Buy Now)Related Forum: iPhone This article, "Apple Modifies In-Store MagSafe Stands to Prevent iPhone 17 Marks" first appeared on MacRumors.com Discuss this article in our forums

Ah, 2010. The year when Apple launched the iPad, but the limelight was stolen by something else entirely: Antennagate. Soon after the launch of the iPhone 4, users discovered that when they held the phone in a typical grip for a phone call, the number of bars shown for signal strength immediately dropped dramatically. Apple responded in a number of ways, including Steve Jobs famously suggesting that users were holding the phone wrong, but the issue was resolved by changing just 20 bytes of code … more…

Apple today announced that its Hypertension Notifications feature on select Apple Watch models is available in Canada starting today. The feature is available on Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10, Series 11, Ultra 2, and Ultra 3 models running watchOS 26. It is not available on any Apple Watch SE models. Users can set up the feature in the Health app on a paired iPhone. * How to Turn On Apple Watch Hypertension Notifications Hypertension Notifications first launched in the U.S. and more than 150 other countries and territories last month. The feature can alert users if signs of chronic hypertension (high blood pressure) are detected, according to Apple. Based on data from the Apple Watch's optical heart sensor, the feature can analyze how a user's blood vessels respond to the beats of the heart. The algorithm works passively in the background, reviewing data over 30-day periods, and users are notified if consistent signs of hypertension are detected. Apple says the feature does not require calibration, does not measure blood pressure directly, and does not surface a blood pressure reading to users. Apple said the feature underwent "rigorous scientific validation," as outlined in a 12-page document. According to the company, it was developed with advanced machine learning and training data from multiple studies totaling more than 100,000 participants, and its performance was then validated in a clinical study of more than 2,000 participants. Apple says the feature is "not intended for use by people under 22 years old, those who have been previously diagnosed with hypertension, or during pregnancy."Related Roundups: Apple Watch 11, Apple Watch Ultra 3Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now), Apple Watch Ultra (Buy Now)Related Forum: Apple Watch This article, "Apple Watch's High Blood Pressure Notifications Available in Canada Starting Today" first appeared on MacRumors.com Discuss this article in our forums

Apple today outlined changes that it is making to the App Store for users and developers located in Texas to comply with the state's ‌App Store‌ Accountability Act (SB2420). Starting on January 1, 2026, Apple users located in Texas will need to confirm whether they are 18 years or older when creating an Apple account. Apple Accounts for users under 18 will be required to join a Family Sharing group, and parents will need to provide consent for all ‌App Store‌ downloads, app purchases, and in-app transactions. Developers will also need to make changes to their apps to comply with the law. To assist developers, Apple plans to update the Declared Age Range API to provide the required age categories for new account users in Texas. Apple is also creating APIs that will let developers invoke a system experience to allow the user to request that parental consent be re-obtained. Parents will also be able to revoke consent to prevent a minor from using an app. Apple has been fighting against age assurance requirements in Texas and other states like Utah and Louisiana, because of the data collection required to determine user age. Apple says that SB2420 will force users to share personally identifiable information to download apps. While we share the goal of strengthening kids' online safety, we are concerned that SB2420 impacts the privacy of users by requiring the collection of sensitive, personally identifiable information to download any app, even if a user simply wants to check the weather or sports scores. Apple will continue to provide parents and developers with industry-leading tools that help enhance child safety while safeguarding privacy within the constraints of the law. Apple CEO Tim Cook reportedly contacted Texas Governor Greg Abbott to ask him to veto the legislation, but Abbott was not persuaded and he signed the act into law in May. In an attempt to head off child protection laws that vary from state to state, Apple introduced new child safety measures at the beginning of 2025. Apple created an updated age rating system, added a simpler way for parents to set up child accounts, made changes to what kids see on the ‌App Store‌, and developed the Declared Age Range API to provide a privacy-focused way for developers to confirm the age range of app users. Apple's Declared Age Range API prevents apps from having specific information about children, such as their date of birth. Apple has continually said that it does not want to collect information like date of birth at the ‌App Store‌ level because all users would need to hand over that information regardless of whether they want to use an age limited app. SB2420 requires app store platforms to "use a commercially reasonable method of verification" to determine a user's age during account creation. Texas does not define what a commercially reasonable method of verification entails, and Apple hasn't specified how age verification will work.Tag: App Store This article, "Apple Details App Store Changes to Comply With Texas Age Verification Law" first appeared on MacRumors.com Discuss this article in our forums

Late last week, Discord reported on a breach that happened recently with its third-party customer support partner, Zendesk. But new information indicates the stolen data could be worse than originally thought, including millions of government photo IDs. more…