Sources: iOS 18 will let users lock built-in iPhone apps behind Face ID, and it is likely that the feature will also work with Touch ID or an iPhone's passcode

iOS 18 will offer a new security feature that allows users to lock individual apps, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter.

MacRumors 2024-06-10 Joe Rossignol

Context & Ripple Effects

The reported control fits Apple’s longer use of device biometrics for credential and account protection, including its earlier move toward passkey-based sign-in authenticated on-device.

Within iOS 18, it also complements a wider push toward user-configurable phone behavior, from more flexible Home Screen layouts to more granular access choices.

First-order effects

iPhone users would be able to require Face ID before opening individual built-in apps, with Touch ID or the device passcode expected as fallback methods.
The change adds a per-app privacy layer on top of unlocking the handset, particularly relevant when an unlocked phone is handed to or viewed by someone else.

Second-order effects

Apple’s built-in apps gain an OS-level privacy control without users needing separate locking utilities; third-party app makers may face greater demand to match that level of in-app privacy where their apps handle sensitive information.
The feature reinforces the value of Apple’s biometric authentication stack, alongside protections such as Stolen Device Protection’s restrictions on sensitive account actions.

Third-order effects

If Apple continues to turn broad device access into app- and data-specific controls, mobile privacy increasingly shifts from a single lock-screen decision to granular OS-enforced boundaries.
That direction can make platform-level permissions and authentication behavior a more important competitive and policy focus, though this report does not establish whether the lock mechanism will extend to third-party apps.

The trend: Mobile operating systems are moving toward finer-grained, biometric-backed controls over what an already-unlocked device can reveal or do.

Discussion

@rsgnl Joe Rossignol on x
Here are all six iOS 18 leaks that I reported before anyone: - Calculator app for iPad - Lock apps behind Face ID - Dark Mode tint for Home Screen app icons - Place app icons anywhere on Home Screen - More customizable Control Center - Add effects to individual words in Messages …
@rsgnl Joe Rossignol on x
SCOOP: iOS 18 will let you lock entire apps behind Face ID, multiple sources told me. I imagine this feature will also work with Touch ID/passcode. No more having to use Screen Time or Shortcuts workarounds.
@sentry @sentry on x
Reminiscing about shipping this feature 10yrs ago (one of my last jailbreak tweaks) https://www.cultofmac.com/... s/o @alexeheath [image]
@andrewhartar Andrew Hart on x
@rsgnl Please bring it to VisionOS as an enhancement to Guest Mode (yes you can have full access, except for my photos, email, slack etc)
@dylanmcd8 Dylan on x
iOS 18 is shaping up to be an insanely huge release, wow! Big design changes, new features, and a ton of new AI stuff. I can only imagine how buggy this Beta 1 is gonna be...
@rsgnl Joe Rossignol on x
SCOOP: Dark Mode 🤝 Home Screen. Starting with iOS 18, app icons will have a dark tint on the Home Screen when Dark Mode is turned on, multiple sources told me. This feature will initially be limited to Apple apps.
@neolitenexus @neolitenexus on x
@MacRumors Apple's doing all the catching up in a single update
@brandonbutch Brandon Butch on x
@rsgnl YUGE
r/apple r on reddit
iOS 18 Will Let You Lock Apps Behind Face ID, Sources Say
@richbrome Rich on threads
Siri's stupidity can be so astounding that it seems intentional, like it's screwing with me for kicks. I just asked Siri to “take me home” and it starts directions to my street address but *in a whole different city and state*. Not the first time. It's the most basic thing and…
@aulia Aulia Masna on threads
We're three days away from WWDC and leaks about what Apple might announce on Monday are streaming even more. I understand that anticipation and expectations on what's going to be announced are stratospheric but you'll extinguish the fun, the surprise, and delight, if you find ou…
@eshumarneedi @eshumarneedi on threads
Apple Intelligence is a kick-ass name.
@ipedro Pedro Marques on threads
 apple will unveil a new Siri at WWDC on Monday. It's been 13 years since Steve Jobs acquired Siri and he died soon after, unable to realize his long term vision for conversational computing. Tim Cook is an excellent CEO but he's not a visionary and he let Siri wither. Steve…
@stephenrobles Stephen Robles on threads
Rumors are that Apple's AI features will require iPhone 15 Pro...my beta testing device is a 14 and I typically don't run betas on my main device. This may be a conundrum.
@amonshiz Andrew Monshizadeh on threads
The one thing I want Apple to use an LLM to improve in iOS: figuring out that I want to keep playing my podcast always, not the first song in my Music library, and after watching a random YouTube video.
@noahdmnc Noah Dominic on threads
Apple is absolutely correct in not choosing to call it ‘A.I.’ Just because the zeitgeist has, in a tragic turn of events, regressed from correct and technical verbiage into nonspecific, meaningless marketingspeak doesn't mean that Apple has to.
@chipcolandreo Chip Colandreo on threads
Here's the problem with “Apple Intelligence”... it suddenly makes Apple - the company, the BRAND - solely responsible for any mistakes made by the AI. It's not an LLM “hallucination” anymore, it's a failure of Apple Intelligence. I can't see Apple sticking its neck out like tha…
@clarko@mastodon.social @clarko@mastodon.social on mastodon
Now you've massively increased Siri's capabilities without touching the happy paths. — And you've incentivized developers *even more* to adopt AppIntents and expose more of their app's functionality to Shortcuts/Siri. — All because you said “failures go to OpenAI” instead of …
@clarko@mastodon.social @clarko@mastodon.social on mastodon
Of course OpenAI is also pretty good at function calling. You provide it a list of things YOUR software can do, and ChatGPT acts as an interface: translating a verbal request into a machine request, with all the parameters filled out correctly. — Get OpenAI to do that with Sho…
@parmy Parmy Olson on x
Apple's WWDC is today. One big question: how will the company maintain its commitment to privacy in an (expected) partnership with OpenAI? One way might be for Apple to say it'll process all AI queries on its own servers, rather than OpenAI's / Microsoft's.
@markoznewz Marko Zivkovic on x
We actually have quite a lot of details about Web Eraser - we know what it looks like, how it works etc. If Apple scraps it - we can point out what was removed, make some mock-ups, and explain why it's missing.
@trungtphan Trung Phan on x
Crazy that Apple is overhauling Siri — and integrating new AI features at WWDC — because of Larry David and this scene from your Curb Your Enthusiasm [video]
@ostynhyss @ostynhyss on x
tomorrow the HomePod may become more than just a beautiful paper-weight [image]
@dcurtis Dustin Curtis on x
Calling new AI features “Apple Intelligence” is way too cringe, even for Apple. If they actually call it that tomorrow, I don't know if my eyes will be able to handle how far they'll roll back into my head.
@carnage4life Dare Obasanjo on x
How it started vs. How it's going [Quotes his tweet from March 2023 “It would be faster for Apple to delete all the Siri code and start over with ChatGPT as a way to make Siri usable than to continue down the current path one or two barely useful features every year at WWDC."] ne…
@mblumenthal Mike Blumenthal on x
iOS 18 Siri - AI, advanced in-app features, more features I might actually miss “stupid Siri” https://appleinsider.com/...
@duaneforrester Duane Forrester on x
This Fall iOS18 will see a major step forward in consumer access to an ai-powered agent. Siri is apparently getting major upgrades, and the applied AI will be able to help with so much more. This trains consumers. Who train the system. https://appleinsider.com/...
r/wallstreetbets r on reddit
Siri Upgrade Leak - WWDC on Monday - AAPL to 200$ ?
r/technology r on reddit
AppleInsider has received the exact details of Siri's new functionality, as well as prompts Apple used to test the software
r/OpenAI r on reddit
AppleInsider has received the exact details of Siri's new functionality, as well as prompts Apple used to test the software.
r/apple r on reddit
Everything Siri Will Be Able to Do In iOS 18 - Apple Insider
@jetscott Scott Stein on threads
In the meantime, some AI in Vision Pro would be welcome
@crowslabyrinth.com @crowslabyrinth.com on bluesky
AI is a godsend for Apple for one simple reason: it enables them to sell truckloads more iPhones, iPads and Macs because the old models won't be able to run the latest and greatest AI stuff. [embedded post]
@markgurman Mark Gurman on x
My sense is that many of the features in the first iOS 18 beta have come in really hot and this first seed is going to be especially buggy. In fact, some are surprised the first betas are going out tomorrow. As I've said, the AI features will be a beta - even at launch in fall.
@markgurman Mark Gurman on x
Power On: Apple's AI push isn't so much about its current devices, but enabling its next wave of hardware from AR glasses to AirPods with cameras to potentially humanoid robots and more. https://www.bloomberg.com/...
@gartenberg Michael Gartenberg on x
@markgurman I doubt there will be many, if any live demos. Lots of scripted takes on video. The days of flying without a net might have reached peak at the iPhone launch.
@gartenberg Michael Gartenberg on x
@stevesi @markgurman Robots with iPads as their heads? Might be a sign Apple is heading a little off course.
@markgurman Mark Gurman on x
Apple's developers conference on Monday will show whether the iPhone maker can become a major player in the burgeoning field of artificial intelligence, marking a critical moment for a company forced to adapt to a new era. https://www.bloomberg.com/...
@adeoressi Adeo Ressi on x
So late to the game. The Apple AI announcement is around the time that Microsoft is releasing AI enabled computers.
@rjonesy Ryan Jones on x
Bet this is the new Siri glimmer and Apple pumps AI *actions*, not answers. [video of Apple logo animation with “Action packed.” tagline]
@stevesi Steven Sinofsky on x
...Apple has a long history of a combination of patience (waiting for the right integration, decline of hype cycle, end of transition to something new, and settling of what the scenario might be) before diving into things which is coupled with an ability to test features as essen…
r/apple r on reddit
Apple's AI Push Sets Stage for Everything From Glasses to Robots

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