Apple’s upcoming iOS 26 update is packed with new features and changes – but not all of them are just for fun. As part of its range of announcements during last week’s WWDC, Apple A series of features and changes revealed Helping parents to protect your children and teenagers when using the iPhone.
There are eight changes here that you can expect when your family equipment is updated to the fall.
Allow to recite new numbers
Once your family updates your iPhones to iOS 26, your children will only be able to text numbers within their saved contacts. If they want to send a lesson to a new number, they will first need your permission.
This process works equally to request or shop for additional screen time: you will receive permission in messages, and Apple says that it can be provided or rejected with a tap. This structure is also open to developers to apply in its apps, which will allow children to send requests to chat, follow, or friend accounts in other apps.
Age with apps
Credit: Apple
If an app provides a variety of materials and experience depending on the age of their users, it can send you an age limit request to your child. The idea is that you do not have to share your child’s exact date of birth; Rather, you will send a limit to your child’s age.
In addition, you can configure these requests such as other permissions in apps – you can choose whether this age limit is to share with all the apps that want it, or if the apps will need to seek permission every time. You can also choose to share the age limits that move forward anytime.
This change can happen in response Popping new laws across AmericaThis will require an app store like Apple so that it can verify the age of its users.
Teen accounts now have new boundaries
Child accounts are required for users under 13 years of age, but optional for children who are 17 years of age. This means that while some teenagers have done protection in their accounts, who have created an Apple account after the age of 13, may not be for all the borders you want.
Moving forward, Apple Default will apply new boundaries to accounts for the teenager. It includes web content filters as well as communication protection, a feature that warns that when nudity material is sent or shared.
New categories for age rating
Currently, Apple’s app stores have four age ratings for apps: 4+, 9+, 12+ and 17+. Apple now states that they are expanding this list in five, and adding the following three ratings for teenagers: 13+, 16+ and 18+. While the company does not specify, possibly, 4+ and 9+ will remain.
What do you think so far?
I can understand the logic here: 12+ and 17+ app shows a five -year difference between ratings, which can cause a problem for developers with suspicious materials: perhaps the app 12 and less is not quite right for it, but is fine for 16 years old children. But in the current ranking, they will need to be placed under 17+, which can benefit those users from the app. In addition, developers can now tailor their apps for more specific demographics.
App store content warning
With the new update, you will see a new warning on the app store pages for apps, including potentially problematic materials, such as user-related materials, messages or advertising. You will also see if the app ships with in-app content control, so you can fix the experience for your children.
Improper apps will not be shown to children
Apple says that when you set the app material ban for your children, the app store will hide the apps with a rating of those restrictions. This means that your children can browse through app stores pages such as games, and apps tabs, which are inappropriate, which are inappropriate.
Ask to buy an extended
On the other hand, now there is a way to request children to buy something outside their age limit, through asking to buy. Ask to buy is the facility that allows your children to send a request to buy something at the app store. Moving forward, you will be able to provide an exception to the age limit, to allow your child to buy the app anyway. You will also be able to save permission at any time, which will prevent your child from using the app.
New communication security trigger
Apple says that communication security will now also look out for nudity in facetime calls, and will “intervene” when it discovers. In addition, this feature will blur nudity in shared albums in photographs.
