Apple keeps Hide My Email on icloud.com after privacy outcry
Apple has reversed its decision to move Hide My Email addresses to a separate domain, keeping them on @icloud.com. The change came after users argued that the @private.icloud.com domain would make it easier for websites to block these addresses. Apple did not explain the reversal, but reports say employees had objected to the change.
The reversal follows months of user criticism that began when Apple first announced the domain shift. Subscribers to the iCloud+ service argued that a distinct @private.icloud.com suffix would effectively label these addresses as disposable, allowing sign-up forms to filter them out. The @icloud.com domain keeps masked addresses visually identical to standard Apple accounts.
This is not the first privacy stumble for the feature. A bug reported by 404 Media earlier this year caused rejected spam emails to expose users' actual addresses, and Apple took over a year to patch it. The company has not commented on the latest reversal, though Daring Fireball's John Gruber indicated internal employee objections played a role.
The decision could preserve the practical value of Hide My Email for privacy-conscious consumers who rely on masked addresses to avoid spam and data harvesting. However, the feature's effectiveness remains limited — Apple can still unmask users for law enforcement