9to5Mac Security Bite is exclusively brought to you by Mosyle, the only Apple Unified Platform. Making Apple devices work-ready and enterprise-safe is all we do. Our unique integrated approach to management and security combines state-of-the-art Apple-specific security solutions for fully automated Hardening & Compliance, Next Generation EDR, AI-powered Zero Trust, and exclusive Privilege Management with the most powerful and modern Apple MDM on the market. The result is a totally automated Apple Unified Platform currently trusted by over 45,000 organizations to make millions of Apple devices work-ready with no effort and at an affordable cost. Request your EXTENDED TRIAL today and understand why Mosyle is everything you need to work with Apple.
In an earlier edition of Security Bite, I predicted that Apple would finally announce end-to-end encryption (E2EE) to the RCS Universal Profile at WWDC 2025. That didn’t happen, but Apple did introduce two nice spam-protection tools along with a series of smaller updates designed to make the iPhone safer for everyone. Now that iOS 26 is basically in its final form ahead of wide release in tandem with the launch of iPhone 17, here’s a rundown of my favorite privacy features.
Advanced Fingerprinting Protection by default
With iOS 26, Safari will now apply Advanced Fingerprinting Protection across all browsing sessions by default. This feature blocks websites from accessing device-identifying info like screen dimensions, CPU cores, and even browser information like plug-ins you have installed. It works by presenting “a simplified version of the system configuration so more devices look identical to trackers, making it harder to single yours out,” according to Apple. “This protection is on by default, so there are no extra steps for you to take.”
Tracking parameter stripping, what Apple calls “Link Tracking Protection,” is still only applied automatically in Private Browsing or when links are opened from Mail and Messages. This removes pesky tracking parameters like utm_source, gclid, and fbclid from URLs to make web fingerprinting harder. This hasn’t changed from iOS 18, that said, if you’re on iOS 26, you can enable this across your entire Safari experience, albeit manually.
Here’s how to enable Link Tracking Protection for “All Browsing”:
Settings -> Safari -> Advanced -> Select Advanced Tracking and Fingerprinting Protection and toggle on “All Browsing”
Call Screening
Call Screening is a new addition to the redesigned Phone app. In iOS 26, when users receive a call from an unknown number, iPhone will now silently answer it in the background. When these calls are answered, callers will be prompted by an automated voice to state their name and reason for calling. These responses are then transcribed in real-time for review directly on the Lock Screen. From here, users can decide whether to ignore the call, swipe to answer, or type a reply. The latter will use the same non-Siri-related robotic voice to read the typed reply to the caller on the other line. Users will immediately see translated replies on the call screen.
Call Screening on iOS 26 in action. Screenshots via Max Weinbach.
... continue reading