Apple Adds Parental Controls and Expands Content Detection in iOS 27

Apple announced several child safety features for iOS 27, iPadOS 27, and macOS 27 during its recent keynote. The changes include updates to child accounts, new Safari restrictions, and expanded detection in Communication Safety. Sarah Gardner, founder and CEO of Heat Initiative, protested outside Apple Park in Cupertino, California, for the fifth time on the day of the event.

She has spent 15 years in online trust and safety and previously worked with companies for 10 years before founding the nonprofit. Gardner said the 10 minutes Apple devoted to child safety in the keynote marked a shift from earlier positions where the company was absent from such discussions. She described the new tools as a positive step but not groundbreaking.

The updates require child accounts for users under 13 and make them available up to age 18. Onboarding now takes around six minutes and includes options to limit adult websites and set age-appropriate App Store access. Ask to Browse requires children to seek parental permission before visiting new websites in Safari.

By default, children must request approval before saving or communicating with new contacts in Phone, FaceTime, or Messages. Communication Safety now detects and blurs gore or graphic violent content in addition to nudity. The feature operates automatically for users under 18 and extends to Shared Photo Albums, Contact Posters, and the Contacts app.

Time Allowances offer age-based suggestions for time spent in categories such as Entertainment, Games, or Social Media. Parents can set daily schedules for app groups and pause device access remotely. A new reporting function for nudity, violent content, or gore will launch first in Australia, Brazil, the US, and the UK before expanding elsewhere.