With Apple’s emphasis on privacy and security, it would be a big value add to include a VPN on all their devices. It could have like a free and paid tier and the whole bit. I know I’d really appreciate having a VPN that I could just put on for a few days while on hotel wifi, and I could see myself upgrading to a paid tier if I ever needed to use it more often.
They already sorta have this in iCloud Relay, paid of course included in iCloud+ but it is an option and does extend partially into the free tier.
Typically free VPN’s suck and there’s probably an expensive reason as to why companies stay away from offering them for free. Though yes would be great if Apple did it
Apple would probably argue that Private Relay is good enough for most people, i’d guess.
chances are your cell carrier offers a free or cheap option, too.
They already have iCloud Relay, which is even better designed than a regular VPN since even Apple alone can’t see your traffic.
Currently it is only used in Mail, Safari and in app browsers but I assume over time it will also expand to all Internet traffic.
Interesting idea, but it might be a headache for Apple as VPN use so often breaks many websites. Apple’s in the ad business now, so I hear (/s), so it’s not likely in their best interest . . .
What exactly do you think a VPN is protecting you from assuming all of your connections are https?
I’d hope that Apple had more clue than that, since Private Relay has nothing to do with a VPN.
So can you change location like vpn?
Your point is moot, if you think about iMessage.
You’re of the opinion that Apple is against privacy?
A VPN wraps your whole request until it reaches the VPN, effectively obfuscating the whole interaction, where with https it’s still possible to observe the interaction even if you can’t make sense of the messages. It’s just another layer.
They have enough overlap that for most people they’ll serve the same purpose, unless you’re trying to make yourself appear to be from another country to get around content restrictions or the like. In some ways, private relay is actually superior, since with a VPN you’re trusting all of your data to one company. Apple’s method of splitting your data between their servers and an external set of servers means both Apple and the company running the exit node would have to be compromised for your data to be exposed.
If you “can’t make sense of it” and all of the traffic is encrypted, the VPN does nothing to protect your information that https doesn’t already do besides hide your DNS requests.
That’s like saying all airbags do is prevent you from smashing your skull into your steering wheel. Your DNS requests are a huge part of your digital footprint.
Yep, that’s what I meant. Still would rather people on the network not know who I’m talking to.