Yesterday, there were reports that T-Mobile has started blocking Apple’s new privacy feature called iCloud Private Relay. Shortly after the report spread, T-Mobile released a statement that it wasn’t blocking the feature unlike its European counterpart, who have blocked the feature along with EE, Vodafone, and Telefonica.
Today, T-Mobile is shedding more light into the matter after it has discovered what was causing the feature to be blocked.
In a statement to Bloomberg, T-Mo said:
“Overnight our team identified that in the 15.2 iOS release, some device settings default to the feature being toggled off. We have shared this with Apple. This is not specific to T-Mobile. Again though, we have not broadly blocked iCloud Private.”
iCloud Private Relay is a new feature that Apple included in the latest iOS 15 update. Through this feature, users are able to hide the websites they previously visited from third parties, including Apple and the carrier being used. The feature is currently in beta mode and isn’t switched on by default.
In the original discovery, Apple has explained why the feature is being blocked by T-Mobile:
“Networks that require the ability to audit traffic or perform network-based filtering will block access to Private Relay. Your cellular provider may be providing network-based services, such as Parental Controls, requiring them to view the traffic on your network.”
If you have updated your device to iOS 15, you can check if the feature is already available on your device by going to Settings and tapping your name on top > choose iCloud > Private Relay.
Source: The Verge