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A new security feature rolled out to select models of the latest iPhones and iPads this week will make it more difficult for law enforcement, spies, and malicious hackers to obtain a person\u2019s precise location data from their phone provider.<\/p>\n
According to Apple, the new feature, when enabled, limits the precision of location data<\/a> that iPhones and cellular-enabled iPads share with the customer\u2019s cell carrier. Sharing a less-precise location, such as the general neighborhood rather than a street address, will help to protect the device owner\u2019s privacy, the company claims.\u00a0<\/p>\n Apple said switching on the feature does not affect the precision of location data shared with apps, or shared with first responders during an emergency call.\u00a0<\/p>\n The limit precise location feature is supported on iPhone Air, iPhone 16e, and iPad Pro (M5) Wi-Fi + Cellular, running iOS 26.3, and is available on a handful of global carriers including Telekom in Germany, AIS and True Thailand, EE and BT in the United Kingdom, and Boost Mobile in United States.\u00a0<\/p>\n The company did not give a reason for introducing the new feature, and a spokesperson for Apple would not comment on the record when reached by email.\u00a0<\/p>\n The new feature lands at a time when law enforcement agencies are increasingly tapping cell carriers to access the location data of individuals for tracking them in real time, or examining where they have traveled over a period of time<\/a>.<\/p>\n Hackers also frequently target cell carriers for the sensitive data that they collect on their customers. Over the past year, several U.S. phone giants, including AT&T and Verizon, have confirmed persistent intrusions by China-backed hackers<\/a>, dubbed Salt Typhoon, seeking phone call logs and messages<\/a> of senior American officials.\u00a0<\/p>\n Recent threats aside, long-known vulnerabilities in global cellular networks have allowed surveillance vendors to snoop on the location data of individuals<\/a> anywhere in the world.<\/p>\n While telecom operators can determine the approximate location of a person\u2019s phone, the person\u2019s device itself plays a part in providing accurate location data back to the carrier, said Gary Miller, a mobile security expert who serves as a Citizen Lab researcher and senior director of network intelligence at iVerify.<\/p>\n \u201cMost people aren\u2019t aware that devices can send location data outside of just apps,\u201d said Miller. \u201cWhile [the devices] can limit GPS disclosure at the app level, they haven\u2019t been able to lock down precise location disclosure to the network.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cApple\u2019s feature, while limited to very few operator networks, is a step in the right direction in providing users with greater privacy controls,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n