Apple plans change to Hide My Email that could make it less effective

Apple has quietly sparked a mini privacy panic by changing its Hide My Email feature — the paid tool that lets people sign up for apps and websites without handing over their real address. Right now, those masked addresses blend in with normal Apple email accounts. But soon, Apple says new ones will use @private.icloud.com, which means apps and websites may be able to spot them instantly and refuse them. For a feature people pay for partly because it helps them stay low-key, that landed like a thud.

The community reaction? Less a careful debate, more a collective “wait... doesn’t this defeat the point?” Apple users on Reddit reportedly blasted the move as making the feature much less useful, especially if companies start treating private addresses like fake throwaway accounts. And because Apple didn’t explain why it’s making the switch, that only poured more fuel on the suspicion bonfire.

On Hacker News, the drama was almost accidentally funny: the lone posted reaction was just “Dup” with a link, which somehow captures the exhausted internet mood perfectly — another day, another privacy uproar, another comment section acting like it’s already seen this sequel. Add in the backdrop of governments pushing to identify anonymous users, plus Apple previously handing over account details in a high-profile case, and the vibes are very much “privacy, but with an asterisk.”