Apple to unify Sign in with Apple and Hide My Email under private.icloud.com

Apple Developer: Later this summer, Apple will unify the email domains used by Sign in with Apple and iCloud+ Hide My Email under a single, shared domain: private.icloud.com. New addresses generated for both features will be issued on the new domain. For example: Sign in with Apple addresses, previously issued on privaterelay.appleid.com, will be issued on private.icloud.com. iCloud+ Hide My Email addresses, previously issued on icloud.com, will be issued on private.icloud.com. Existing addresses on the legacy domains will continue to work and forward mail to users without interruption. Initial reaction to this change is that it might render “Hide My Email” ineffective, because shitbird services will simply ban the domain, trying to force you to use your primary email address. It seems inevitable that some number of services will do this. But my retort is that a service that won’t accept these email addresses is one that I probably don’t want to have anything to do with. The only reason not to accept private.icloud.com email addresses is if you want to do something invasive with users’ actual email addresses.  ★ 

Macworld One of the great features of Apple’s iCloud+ online storage service is Hide My Email, a feature that allows users to create and use an anonymous email address when signing up for something online. It currently creates an email address using @icloud.com; since the email domain is the same as the one for your actual iCloud email address, a site can’t block you for using a “fake” address. But Apple announced some news to developers about Hide My Email, and it’s not the best. Apple said that “later this summer,” it is changing Hide My Email so that the email address created uses @private.icloud.com instead. That’s a distinct difference from @icloud.com and could allow services to filter the two domains and reject @private.icloud.com from being accepted when an email address is demanded. That could be bad news for users who depend on the service and want to keep their personal email free from spam. On the bright side, existing Hide My Email addresses that you’ve already created will continue to work and will remain @icloud.com addresses. But at some point this summer, any new addresses you create will have the new domain, so be prepared for the possibility that Hide My Email address will be rejected. Apple did not offer an explanation for the change in its news release. Our friends at TechCrunch contacted Apple for a comment, but did not receive a response either. If, after this new policy goes into effect, you find that Hide My Email isn’t effective anymore, you could do what I used to do (and will probably go back to doing) and create an account at a free online email service for the specific purpose of non-critical logins. It’s not as convenient as Hide My Email–you need to log into the email account to confirm and complete any registration. But it’s better than exposing your actual email address to a service that will likely use it for marketing purposes.

Apple is changing the email domains behind Sign in with Apple and Hide My Email, forcing developers and email providers to update systems before the transition begins.Apple's Hide My Email serviceA June 15 developer notice told developers to update account systems, email validation tools, and allowlists before the rollout begins. Email service providers were also asked to review filtering, suppression, and routing rules tied to Apple's current relay domains.The change affects two privacy features that let users interact with apps, websites, and online services without revealing a personal email address. Sign in with Apple currently generates relay addresses ending in privaterelay.appleid.com.Hide My Email generates relay addresses on icloud.com. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Apple's decision to move Hide My Email to a dedicated "private.icloud.com" domain appears to have the consequence of making it easier for platforms that want to block iCloud aliases to do so. Apple is unifying the email domains used by Sign in with Apple and ‌iCloud‌+ Hide My Email under a single private.icloud.com domain later this summer. Sign in with Apple currently uses privaterelay.appleid.com, while Hide My Email uses icloud.com, the same domain as standard ‌iCloud‌ email addresses. That shared domain has historically made it difficult for services to selectively block disposable ‌iCloud‌ addresses. Blocking icloud.com outright would also block legitimate users with standard Apple email accounts. With the new subdomain, that tradeoff disappears. @vxdb on X was among the first to flag the implication: "platforms who want to ban ‌iCloud‌ aliases can now do so by banning this new subdomain without affecting all ‌iCloud‌ users." Others online noted that email services, signup flows, and anti-abuse systems will now have a clean, unambiguous target if they choose to restrict alias-generated addresses. Apple has said that existing addresses on legacy domains will continue to work and that mail will be forwarded with no interruption, so current Hide My Email users won't lose access to their aliases. New addresses generated after the migration, however, will feature the private.icloud.com domain, and it is those addresses that become blockable in isolation for the first time.Tag: iCloudRelated Forum: Apple Music, Apple Pay/Card, iCloud, Fitness+This article, "Apple's New Hide My Email Domain Makes It Easier to Block iCloud Aliases" first appeared on MacRumors.comDiscuss this article in our forums

Apple will unify the email domains used by Sign in with Apple and iCloud+ Hide My Email under a shared domain, private.icloud.com, later this summer. Hide My Email is a service included with iCloud+, Apple’s subscription service. It allows users to generate one-time-use or reusable email addresses that forward messages to their personal inbox without revealing their actual email address. New email addresses generated by both services will use the new domain. Sign in with … More → The post Apple is bringing Hide My Email and Sign in with Apple under one domain appeared first on Help Net Security.

Apple is merging Sign in with Apple and iCloud+ Hide My Email under a single private.icloud.com domain, making privacy addresses easier to recognize and remember.