iCloud is Apple's cloud-based storage service and app server, designed to let users store data ranging from documents, photos, and music to device backups and app data, such as save states. iCloud is an essential part of the Apple ecosystem, ensuring customers do not lose data, files, or iOS device setups even when an Apple product is lost, stolen, or damaged.
iCloud also includes a set of cloud-based web apps, accessible on any browser though the iCloud website. With iCloud apps, users can access their mail, contacts, calendar, photos, notes, and reminders, or track the location of their iOS and Mac devices. Apple's iWork apps, Pages, Numbers, and Keynote, can also be used in a browser through iCloud.
Every iCloud user is given 5GB of free storage, but 50GB, 200GB, or 2TB of additional storage can be purchased for $0.99, $2.99, or $9.99 per month.
iCloud
By MacRumors Staff
iCloud How Tos
Enable End-to-End Encryption for Your iCloud Backups
Apple's Advanced Data Protection for iCloud feature uses end-to-end encryption to provide the highest level of cloud data security that Apple offers. Here's everything you need to know about enabling it on your devices.
The encrypted security feature gives you the choice to further protect your important iCloud data, including iCloud Backup, Photos, Notes, and more.
Apple's use of...
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How to Temporarily Disable iCloud Private Relay for a Specific Website on iPhone and iPad
When Apple introduced its paid-for iCloud+ service with iOS 15, it included a new security feature called iCloud Private Relay, which is designed to encrypt all of the traffic leaving your device so no one can intercept it or read it.
Private Relay sends web traffic to a server that is maintained by Apple in order to strip the IP address. Once IP info has been removed, Apple sends the...
Can't Upgrade Your iCloud+ Storage Plan on iPhone or iPad? Here's How to Fix It
Every Apple device user is given 5GB of free iCloud storage to let them store their data in secure remote servers, but Apple also offers iCloud+, a premium cloud subscription service that gives you more storage as well as additional features like Private Relay and Hide My Email.
Apple offers iCloud+ with 50GB, 200GB, or 2TB of additional storage for $0.99, $2.99, or $9.99 per month. If...
How to Set Up Custom Email Domains With iCloud Mail on iPhone
With the release of iOS 15.4, Apple has added the ability for users with paid iCloud+ plans to create custom email domains directly on their iPhone. This article explains how it's done.
When you subscribe to iCloud+ (prices start at $0.99) you can use custom domains to send and receive email with iCloud Mail. That means if you own a personal domain name, you can set up iCloud Mail to use it...
iOS 15: How to Create a 'Hide My Email' Private Address
With iOS 15 and Hide My Email, you can create unique, random email addresses that forward to your personal inbox whenever you want to keep your personal email address private.
This is especially useful if you think that a business or website is likely to share your email address with ad agencies or other third-parties for marketing purposes. Providing them with a dummy address means you can ...
iOS 15: How to Change Where 'Hide My Email' Addresses Forward
With iOS 15 and the Hide My Email feature exclusive to iCloud+ subscribers, you can create unique, random email addresses that forward to your personal inbox whenever you want to keep your personal email address private.
Hide My Email addresses are really useful if you think that a business or website is likely to share your email address with ad agencies or other third-parties for...
iOS 15: How to Deactivate or Delete a 'Hide My Email' Private Address
In iOS 15, paid iCloud+ plans feature Hide My Email, which lets you create unique, random email addresses that forward messages to your personal inbox whenever you want to keep your personal email address private.
They're really useful if you think that a business or website is likely to share your email address with ad agencies or other third-parties for marketing purposes. Providing them...
iOS 15: How to Use Hide My Email
With the introduction of iOS 15, Apple rebadged its paid iCloud plans to "iCloud+" to reflect the fact that subscribers now get access to additional privacy features like Private Relay and Hide My Email. This article explains what Hide My Email is and how to use it.
Hide My Email builds on the idea of Sign in With Apple by providing you with unique, random email addresses that forward to...
How to Adjust iCloud Private Relay IP Address Settings
As part of iOS 15, Apple introduced iCloud Private Relay, a feature of all iCloud+ paid plans that's designed to encrypt all of the traffic leaving your device so no one can intercept it or read it.
Private Relay works by sending web traffic to a server that is maintained by Apple to strip the IP address. Once the IP info has been removed, Apple sends the traffic to a second server...
iOS 15: How to Turn iCloud Private Relay On and Off
Alongside iOS 15, Apple introduced an iCloud+ service that adds new features to its paid iCloud plans (upgraded iCloud storage tiers start at $0.99). One of these features is iCloud Private Relay, which is designed to encrypt all of the traffic leaving your device so no one can intercept it or read it.
Private Relay sends web traffic to a server that is maintained by Apple...
How to Back Up Your iPhone or iPad Using iCloud
Creating an iPhone or iPad backup should be routine for most users, as it's a simple procedure and the easiest way to recover your data if your device is replaced, lost, or stolen.
There are two types of backup available to iOS users. iCloud backups are encrypted automatically and stored in the cloud, and you can create and use them anywhere with a Wi-Fi connection. By contrast, computer-base...
How to Use iCloud Email Address Aliases
Apple enables iCloud account holders to use email aliases, which allow you to send and receive emails without disclosing your true email address.
Using an email alias to log in to websites and online services can help protect your genuine email address by hiding it from spammers and other sources of unsoliticted messages.
In addition, email aliases make it easy to filter messages, because...
How to Share iCloud Folders on iPhone and iPad
As of iOS 13.4, Apple lets you share folders that you've synced to iCloud with friends and colleagues who have an Apple ID. Whether you're sharing from an iPhone or iPad, you'll be able to give people one-way access to the file, or allow them to modify the document if you're collaborating on a piece of work. This step-by-step guide shows you how it works.
The sharing options that you choose...
How to Access iCloud on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Windows, and the Web
iCloud is Apple's cloud platform that serves and secures all Apple devices. It can save and synchronize all your photos, contacts, files, reminders, and notes, and you can also use it to store device backups. You can access and manage your iCloud data on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Windows, and the web. Keep reading to learn how.
iCloud stores your content securely and keeps your apps up to date...
How to Enable Messages in iCloud and Fix Stuck Message Downloads
Messages in iCloud, as the name suggests, stores your iMessages in Apple's cloud servers rather than on each of your individual devices, which has a number of benefits.
When you receive a message on one device, it shows up on all devices logged into the same iCloud account. Likewise, when you delete messages and conversations they are instantly removed from all your devices.
Another...
How to Sync Your Apple Music Library Across Devices
If you're an Apple Music subscriber, you can add and download songs, albums, playlists, and video content from the Apple Music catalog to your personal music library, and access all of them on any other Apple devices you own that have the Music app.
With Apple's Sync Library feature enabled, the Apple Music content in your library will be synced across your devices as long as they are all...
How to Recover Files, Contacts, Bookmarks, Calendars and Reminders in iCloud
Apple has little known iCloud tools that are designed to let you recover files that have been deleted from iCloud, as well as recover Contacts, Calendars, and Reminders that have been lost.
Lost iCloud data isn't a situation that comes up often, but these tools were introduced following an iCloud Drive bug in 2015 that caused some users to lose documents stored in iCloud Drive, prompting the...
How to Share an iCloud Photo Link in iOS 12
In iOS 12, Apple has added the ability to share pictures or video in your Photo Library using an iCloud.com link that lasts for 30 days.
Not only is sharing a link quicker and less burdensome on your data allowance than sending several images or gigabytes of video, you can also share the same link as many times as you want within the expiry limit.
For the new photo link option to appear,...
How to Share Files Stored in Your iCloud Drive
You can share files you've synced to iCloud with friends and colleagues who have an Apple ID using the step-by-step guide below. Whether you're sharing from a Mac or an iPhone, you'll be able to give people one-way access to the file, or allow them to modify the document if you're collaborating on a piece of work.
The sharing options you choose automatically sync across your devices, so you...
How to Set Up Out-of-Office Replies in Apple Mail and iCloud Mail
Apple's native Mail application in macOS lacks a specific option for enabling out-of-office replies, but there is another way you can set them up on a Mac, and that's with Rules. It's worth bearing in mind at the outset that your Mac needs to be powered on for this out-of-office method to work. That's because Apple Mail rules are only applied locally to incoming emails, and aren't active on the...
How to Merge and Remove Duplicate Contacts in macOS and iCloud
If you've been maintaining and migrating the same Contacts list across Macs over the years then you've probably come across your fair share of duplicate contact cards. They can also appear seemingly out of nowhere after setting up iCloud Contacts on your Mac for the first time.
Unless you intentionally keep certain information for the same contact separated out for whatever reason, duplicate...
How to Use iCloud Keychain on Your iOS Devices
iCloud Keychain is a feature of your Apple account that you can use to keep your website login credentials, personal details, credit card details, and wireless network information up to date and available across all your Apple devices.
With so many usernames and passwords to remember these days, iCloud Keychain provides a convenient way of always having this information at hand. And with its...
How to Sign Up for iCloud Family Storage Plans in iOS 11
Apple's Family Sharing feature allows you to share music, movies, apps, photos, and more with family members, and in iOS 11, Family Sharing extends to Apple's iCloud Storage plans.
When you purchase a 200GB or 2TB iCloud Storage plan, all members of your family can share the storage space. Depending on how many family members you have, family plans offer more storage at a better price than...
How to Use iCloud Photo Library in Photos to Sync Pictures Between Devices
iCloud Photo Library was introduced with iOS 8, but with the launch of the Photos for OS X app, it's now available on the Mac. In a nutshell, iCloud Photo Library is Apple's newest photo service that lets you sync all of your images across all your devices and to iCloud.
iCloud Photo Library supports several photo and video formats, storing photos in their original format, and it makes all...
iCloud Articles
Apple Questions Funding Behind UK iCloud Lawsuit
Apple today challenged the funding behind a $4 billion UK lawsuit during a tribunal hearing, raising new concerns about the iCloud class action as the company battles further antitrust scrutiny.
The case was initiated by consumer group Which on behalf of consumers, alleging that Apple's iCloud storage practices lock users into the service and cause them to pay more for cloud storage than...
Apple Highlights Five Perks for iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage
After launching new iPhones last month, Apple is promoting iCloud+ with a prominent banner on its home page, in a bid to boost its services revenue. In addition to more storage, all iCloud+ plans include five perks for iPhone users.
As a refresher, iCloud includes 5GB of storage for free. If you want extra storage, you need to subscribe to an iCloud+ plan. In the United States, prices range...
UK Government Issues New Order to Access iCloud User Data
The UK government has issued a new request for Apple to provide access to encrypted iCloud user data, the Financial Times reports.
The report reveals that, in early September, the UK Home Office demanded that Apple creates a way for officials to access encrypted iCloud backups. Unlike its previous order, the latest request focuses on the iCloud data of British citizens specifically....
UK Reportedly Withdraws Demand to Access Encrypted iCloud User Data
The British government has agreed to withdraw its controversial demand to access Apple users' encrypted iCloud data, according to the U.S. director of intelligence.
Tulsi Gabbard said in a post on X (Twitter) the UK had dropped its plans to force Apple to provide a back door that would have "enabled access to the protected encrypted data of American citizens and encroached on our civil...
iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Receive These Five Perks
If you pay for iCloud storage on your iPhone, did you know that Apple offers you five perks beyond the extra storage space, at no additional cost?
Here are the perks included with all iCloud+ plans:Private Relay keeps your Safari browsing history entirely private from network providers, websites, and even Apple.
Hide My Email generates unique, random email addresses whenever needed.
Hom...
iCloud vs. AWS: Apple Has Considered Competing With Amazon in Cloud
Apple in recent years has considered competing with Amazon Web Services (AWS), according to The Information's Aaron Tilley.
In a paywalled report today, Tilley said that Apple was actively discussing the idea into the first half of 2024, but he does not know whether the talks have continued. A supposed key backer of the idea, Michael Abbott, left Apple in 2023.
Apple's potential cloud...
Apple Hit With Class Action Lawsuit Over iCloud Backups
Apple will face a proposed class action lawsuit in California federal court over allegations that iCloud unlawfully monopolizes iPhone users' access to core device backups, following a judge's decision to deny the company's motion to dismiss the case (via Reuters).
Earlier this week, the Northern District of California ruled that plaintiffs had sufficiently amended their complaint to move...
Apple Raises iCloud+ Prices in Three Countries
Apple recently raised prices for its iCloud+ plans in Brazil, Chile, and Peru, according to a support document updated last Thursday.
The table below outlines the price changes in each country.
Country
Old Prices
New Prices
Brazil
50GB: R$ 4.90
200GB: R$ 14.90
2TB: R$ 49.90
6TB: R$ 149.90
12TB: R$ 299.90
50GB: R$ ...
iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Receive a New Perk
If you pay for iCloud storage on your iPhone, Apple has a new perk for you, at no additional cost.
The new perk is the ability to create invitations in the Apple Invites app for the iPhone, which launched in the App Store last month.
In the Apple Invites app, iCloud+ subscribers can create invitations for any occasion, such as birthday parties, graduations, baby showers, and more. Anyone ...
Apple Fights UK's Demand for iCloud Data Backdoor
Apple today filed a legal complaint with the UK's Investigatory Powers Tribunal in an attempt to quash the UK government's demand for backdoor access to encrypted data, reports Financial Times.
Earlier this year, the UK government ordered Apple to give it secret access to encrypted user data uploaded to iCloud worldwide, through the creation of a backdoor. The UK used its Investigatory...
'Apple Invites' Leaked on iCloud Website
Update: The new Apple Invites app has officially been announced.
The main iCloud.com page has seemingly confirmed Apple's rumored invites tool, which has yet to be officially announced by the company.
The page says "Apple Invites" will be an iCloud+ feature:Upgrade to iCloud+ to get more storage, plan events with Apple Invites, and have peace of mind with privacy features like iCloud...
Apple May Launch New iCloud Invite Tool Codenamed 'Confetti' This Week
As early as this week, Apple plans to introduce a new iCloud-based service for event invites, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
In his Power On newsletter, Gurman said the new service is codenamed "Confetti" within Apple. He said the service will offer users a "new way to invite people to parties, functions, and meetings." He did not say if this functionality would be available through a ...
iCloud Backups No Longer Available for iPhones and iPads Running iOS 8 or Earlier
Making a device backup over iCloud now requires iOS 9 or later, which means iPhones and iPads that are running iOS 8 or earlier are no longer able to be backed up using iCloud.
Apple announced the change in November, and as of this week, it has gone into effect. Support for iCloud backups on devices that run iOS 8 or older has ended, and Apple has deleted all existing iCloud backups of ...
iCloud+ Storage Prices Increased in 10 Countries This Year
Over the past several months, Apple has raised its prices for some or all iCloud+ storage plans in 10 countries, including Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Indonesia, Turkey, Pakistan, Nigeria, Egypt, Tanzania, and the Philippines. The updated prices for each of these countries are listed in a support document on Apple's website.
In Japan, for example, prices have increased by around 15%.
...
Apple Defeats Lawsuit Related to iCloud's Measly 5GB of Free Storage
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit this week upheld a lower court's dismissal of a lawsuit alleging that Apple illegally deceived customers into paying for iCloud storage, according to a court filing. The decision was reported by Law360.
The lawsuit alleged that Apple deceived customers into purchasing iCloud-enabled devices by misleading customers into believing that they can...
Apple Ending Support for Safari Bookmark Syncing on iOS 10 and Earlier
In a support document published this week, Apple said it will be dropping support for Safari bookmark syncing on iPhones and iPads running iOS 10 or earlier, and on Macs running macOS Sierra 10.12.5 or earlier, starting December 18. Apple said it made this decision in accordance with its minimum software requirements for iCloud.
Apple said Safari bookmarks on devices running those older iOS...
Apple Acknowledges iCloud Notes Disappearing and Explains How to Fix
Earlier this month, we reported about some iPhone users temporarily losing all of their notes in the Notes app after accepting Apple's updated iCloud terms and conditions. Apple has now indirectly acknowledged this issue in a new support document that outlines steps to follow if your iCloud notes are not appearing on your iPhone, iPad, or Vision Pro.
Fortunately, the notes can be re-synced...
How to Fix iPhone Notes Disappearing After Accepting New iCloud Terms
Apple in September updated its iCloud terms and conditions with some minor changes, and this week it has been notifying iPhone users that they must accept the revised terms in order to continue using iCloud. Unfortunately, after accepting the new terms, some iPhone users have seen all of their notes disappear in the Notes app.
While some users have turned to social media to justifiably panic ...
Apple Adds 9 New Features to iCloud Website
Apple today updated its iCloud.com website, which is the way you can access your iCloud apps and settings from any web browser. With today's refresh, iCloud.com supports some of the features that have previously been introduced in iOS.
There's now a Dark Mode option that will match your Mac's Light Mode or Dark Mode color scheme, plus a customizable homepage where you can select different...
Here's What's New in Apple's Updated iCloud Terms and Conditions Taking Effect Next Week
Apple has started notifying users about an upcoming revision to its iCloud Terms and Conditions, which takes effect on Monday, September 16.
We compared the text of the upcoming iCloud Terms and Conditions with the current U.S. version from September 18, 2023 and identified four key changes:
"Apple ID" references have been changed to "Apple Account" throughout.
iCloud users must agree to ...
