Lucia Ballard, Ivan Krstić, Erik Neuenschwander, and Katie Skinner

FOR PROTECTING PRIVACY WHERE IT MATTERS MOST

APPLE HAS MADE

privacy and security one of the iphone’s top selling points. But a fraction of users, including dissidents, activists, and journalists, have reason to obsess over it. Governments and other parties have targeted these groups with spyware to access messages, location data, and other info that can compromise their physical safety. “These attackers are willing to spend untold millions going after extremely small numbers of people,” says Apple’s head of security engineering and architecture Ivan Krstić.

To combat this threat, Apple asked itself a new question, explains security engineering and architecture engineering manager Lucia Ballard: “If we design for [this] incredibly narrow subset of people, what can we do?” Rather than introducing security settings for all iphone users that would leave those at heightened risk having to fine-tune their own level of selfdefense, Ballard advocated for a single option called Lockdown Mode. Released in September 2022, the feature hardens iphones (and other Apple devices) by restricting functionality that might let spyware wriggle in. Last April, researchers at the Citizen Lab reported that Lockdown Mode had successfully deflected a new type of attack employed by NSO Group’s notorious Pegasus spyware.

A tool called Safety Check, also introduced in 2022, took on another concern: the possibility that iphone owners in abusive relationships might unwittingly be leaking data that puts them at physical risk. Safety Check provides a onestop way to disable sharing options, reset privacy permissions, and change passwords.

These features reflect both the high stakes of personal privacy—and the fresh thinking and ambition of the people who designed them.