Your iPhone records "every tap and there's no way to turn it off": worried much?

This allegedly happens in the App Store.

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Man holding iPhone.
How much do you trust your handset? | Image by PhoneArena
Apple uses every chance it gets to brag about privacy – but is Cupertino actually recording every single tap you make in the App Store?

Some say yes – so this means your favorite iPhone 17 Pro Max is probably gathering much more data than you were led to believe.

What Mysk says


There's an X account (@mysk_co) that's publishing findings in the cybersecurity genre. The X account says it's composed of two iOS developers based on two continents (North America and Europe).

Mysk's most recent findings are all about Apple and the information published on X alleges that Cupertino is watching closely (and taking down notes) as you type.



Here is the post itself:


As you can see, the user's typing process was thoroughly recorded – each tap, corresponding to a letter, is covered in Apple's system.

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Some say this is "just search suggestions" and point out that other search services work like this, too. But the OP (original poster) says this is "app analytics".

How much of our phone activity you think is recorded?
13 Votes

Want to leave?


If you're thinking about leaving, great, but… where to? As the person(s) behind the Mysk account point out, there's no other option for iOS users.

For example, if Apple Music privacy terms are not up to your likings, one can always jump over to Spotify. "But where else can you download apps on the iPhone?" Mysk correctly points out.

How to get this data


If you're curious about what your App Store privacy data looks like, you should:


On a positive note: my search data would be horrendous, full of typos – I'm typing far too fast on the touchscreen keyboard.

Bragging about privacy


Meanwhile, Apple's upcoming iPhone 18 Pro Max could gain a privacy feature that current iPhone 17 Pro owners won't have access to. The change comes from Apple's move to its own C2 modem, which supports a "Limit Precise Location" option introduced in iOS 26.3.

The feature reduces the accuracy of location data shared with carriers, providing only an approximate area instead of a precise address. The iPhone 17 Pro uses a Qualcomm modem and doesn't support the setting.

However, the feature also depends on carrier support, and in the US only Boost Mobile currently offers compatibility, leaving Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile customers unable to take advantage of it… for now.
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