iCloud

By MacRumors Staff on September 15, 2026

iCloud is Apple's cloud-based storage service and app server, designed to let users store data ranging from documents, photos, and music to device backups and app data, such as save states. iCloud is an essential part of the Apple ecosystem, ensuring customers do not lose data, files, or iOS device setups even when an Apple product is lost, stolen, or damaged.

iCloud also includes a set of cloud-based web apps, accessible on any browser though the iCloud website. With iCloud apps, users can access their mail, contacts, calendar, photos, notes, and reminders, or track the location of their iOS and Mac devices. Apple's iWork apps, Pages, Numbers, and Keynote, can also be used in a browser through iCloud.

Every iCloud user is given 5GB of free storage, but 50GB, 200GB, or 2TB of additional storage can be purchased for $0.99, $2.99, or $9.99 per month.

iCloud How Tos

Apple advanced security Advanced Data Protection screen Feature Orange

Enable End-to-End Encryption for Your iCloud Backups

Friday February 7, 2025 5:20 am PST by Tim Hardwick

Apple's Advanced Data Protection for iCloud feature uses end-to-end encryption to provide the highest level of cloud data security that Apple offers. Here's everything you need to know about enabling it on your devices. The encrypted security feature gives you the choice to further protect your important iCloud data, including iCloud Backup, Photos, Notes, and more. Apple's use of...

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How to Temporarily Disable iCloud Private Relay for a Specific Website on iPhone and iPad

Tuesday December 13, 2022 8:51 am PST by Tim Hardwick

When Apple introduced its paid-for iCloud+ service with iOS 15, it included a new security feature called iCloud Private Relay, which is designed to encrypt all of the traffic leaving your device so no one can intercept it or read it. Private Relay sends web traffic to a server that is maintained by Apple in order to strip the IP address. Once IP info has been removed, Apple sends the...

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Can't Upgrade Your iCloud+ Storage Plan on iPhone or iPad? Here's How to Fix It

Monday April 11, 2022 1:27 am PDT by Tim Hardwick

Every Apple device user is given 5GB of free iCloud storage to let them store their data in secure remote servers, but Apple also offers iCloud+, a premium cloud subscription service that gives you more storage as well as additional features like Private Relay and Hide My Email. Apple offers iCloud+ with 50GB, 200GB, or 2TB of additional storage for $0.99, $2.99, or $9.99 per month. If...

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How to Set Up Custom Email Domains With iCloud Mail on iPhone

Tuesday March 29, 2022 1:55 pm PDT by Tim Hardwick

With the release of iOS 15.4, Apple has added the ability for users with paid iCloud+ plans to create custom email domains directly on their iPhone. This article explains how it's done. When you subscribe to iCloud+ (prices start at $0.99) you can use custom domains to send and receive email with iCloud Mail. That means if you own a personal domain name, you can set up iCloud Mail to use it...

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iOS 15: How to Create a 'Hide My Email' Private Address

Thursday August 19, 2021 12:01 pm PDT by Tim Hardwick

With iOS 15 and Hide My Email, you can create unique, random email addresses that forward to your personal inbox whenever you want to keep your personal email address private. This is especially useful if you think that a business or website is likely to share your email address with ad agencies or other third-parties for marketing purposes. Providing them with a dummy address means you can ...

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iOS 15: How to Change Where 'Hide My Email' Addresses Forward

Thursday August 19, 2021 12:00 pm PDT by Tim Hardwick

With iOS 15 and the Hide My Email feature exclusive to iCloud+ subscribers, you can create unique, random email addresses that forward to your personal inbox whenever you want to keep your personal email address private. Hide My Email addresses are really useful if you think that a business or website is likely to share your email address with ad agencies or other third-parties for...

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iOS 15: How to Deactivate or Delete a 'Hide My Email' Private Address

Thursday August 19, 2021 11:59 am PDT by Tim Hardwick

In iOS 15, paid iCloud+ plans feature Hide My Email, which lets you create unique, random email addresses that forward messages to your personal inbox whenever you want to keep your personal email address private. They're really useful if you think that a business or website is likely to share your email address with ad agencies or other third-parties for marketing purposes. Providing them...

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iOS 15: How to Use Hide My Email

Thursday August 19, 2021 11:41 am PDT by Tim Hardwick

With the introduction of iOS 15, Apple rebadged its paid iCloud plans to "iCloud+" to reflect the fact that subscribers now get access to additional privacy features like Private Relay and Hide My Email. This article explains what Hide My Email is and how to use it. Hide My Email builds on the idea of Sign in With Apple by providing you with unique, random email addresses that forward to...

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How to Adjust iCloud Private Relay IP Address Settings

Wednesday August 18, 2021 4:33 pm PDT by Tim Hardwick

As part of iOS 15, Apple introduced iCloud Private Relay, a feature of all iCloud+ paid plans that's designed to encrypt all of the traffic leaving your device so no one can intercept it or read it. Private Relay works by sending web traffic to a server that is maintained by Apple to strip the IP address. Once the IP info has been removed, Apple sends the traffic to a second server...

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iOS 15: How to Turn iCloud Private Relay On and Off

Wednesday August 18, 2021 4:28 pm PDT by Tim Hardwick

Alongside iOS 15, Apple introduced an iCloud+ service that adds new features to its paid ‌iCloud‌ plans (upgraded ‌iCloud‌ storage tiers start at $0.99). One of these features is ‌iCloud‌ Private Relay, which is designed to encrypt all of the traffic leaving your device so no one can intercept it or read it. Private Relay sends web traffic to a server that is maintained by Apple...

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How to Back Up Your iPhone or iPad Using iCloud

Tuesday April 6, 2021 3:50 pm PDT by Tim Hardwick

Creating an iPhone or iPad backup should be routine for most users, as it's a simple procedure and the easiest way to recover your data if your device is replaced, lost, or stolen. There are two types of backup available to iOS users. iCloud backups are encrypted automatically and stored in the cloud, and you can create and use them anywhere with a Wi-Fi connection. By contrast, computer-base...

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How to Use iCloud Email Address Aliases

Wednesday April 1, 2020 5:03 pm PDT by Tim Hardwick

Apple enables iCloud account holders to use email aliases, which allow you to send and receive emails without disclosing your true email address. Using an email alias to log in to websites and online services can help protect your genuine email address by hiding it from spammers and other sources of unsoliticted messages. In addition, email aliases make it easy to filter messages, because...

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How to Share iCloud Folders on iPhone and iPad

Friday February 7, 2020 12:55 pm PST by Tim Hardwick

As of iOS 13.4, Apple lets you share folders that you've synced to iCloud with friends and colleagues who have an Apple ID. Whether you're sharing from an iPhone or iPad, you'll be able to give people one-way access to the file, or allow them to modify the document if you're collaborating on a piece of work. This step-by-step guide shows you how it works. The sharing options that you choose...

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How to Access iCloud on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Windows, and the Web

Wednesday December 18, 2019 12:32 am PST by Tim Hardwick

iCloud is Apple's cloud platform that serves and secures all Apple devices. It can save and synchronize all your photos, contacts, files, reminders, and notes, and you can also use it to store device backups. You can access and manage your iCloud data on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Windows, and the web. Keep reading to learn how. iCloud stores your content securely and keeps your apps up to date...

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How to Enable Messages in iCloud and Fix Stuck Message Downloads

Wednesday December 11, 2019 9:24 am PST by Tim Hardwick

Messages in iCloud, as the name suggests, stores your iMessages in Apple's cloud servers rather than on each of your individual devices, which has a number of benefits. When you receive a message on one device, it shows up on all devices logged into the same iCloud account. Likewise, when you delete messages and conversations they are instantly removed from all your devices. Another...

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How to Sync Your Apple Music Library Across Devices

Thursday February 14, 2019 5:18 pm PST by Tim Hardwick

If you're an Apple Music subscriber, you can add and download songs, albums, playlists, and video content from the Apple Music catalog to your personal music library, and access all of them on any other Apple devices you own that have the Music app. With Apple's Sync Library feature enabled, the Apple Music content in your library will be synced across your devices as long as they are all...

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How to Recover Files, Contacts, Bookmarks, Calendars and Reminders in iCloud

Tuesday October 9, 2018 9:01 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Apple has little known iCloud tools that are designed to let you recover files that have been deleted from iCloud, as well as recover Contacts, Calendars, and Reminders that have been lost. Lost iCloud data isn't a situation that comes up often, but these tools were introduced following an iCloud Drive bug in 2015 that caused some users to lose documents stored in iCloud Drive, prompting the...

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How to Share an iCloud Photo Link in iOS 12

Thursday August 23, 2018 4:00 am PDT by Tim Hardwick

In iOS 12, Apple has added the ability to share pictures or video in your Photo Library using an iCloud.com link that lasts for 30 days. Not only is sharing a link quicker and less burdensome on your data allowance than sending several images or gigabytes of video, you can also share the same link as many times as you want within the expiry limit. For the new photo link option to appear,...

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How to Share Files Stored in Your iCloud Drive

Monday August 20, 2018 5:08 am PDT by Tim Hardwick

You can share files you've synced to iCloud with friends and colleagues who have an Apple ID using the step-by-step guide below. Whether you're sharing from a Mac or an iPhone, you'll be able to give people one-way access to the file, or allow them to modify the document if you're collaborating on a piece of work. The sharing options you choose automatically sync across your devices, so you...

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How to Set Up Out-of-Office Replies in Apple Mail and iCloud Mail

Tuesday March 6, 2018 11:31 pm PST by Tim Hardwick

Apple's native Mail application in macOS lacks a specific option for enabling out-of-office replies, but there is another way you can set them up on a Mac, and that's with Rules. It's worth bearing in mind at the outset that your Mac needs to be powered on for this out-of-office method to work. That's because Apple Mail rules are only applied locally to incoming emails, and aren't active on the...

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How to Merge and Remove Duplicate Contacts in macOS and iCloud

Thursday February 22, 2018 12:03 am PST by Tim Hardwick

If you've been maintaining and migrating the same Contacts list across Macs over the years then you've probably come across your fair share of duplicate contact cards. They can also appear seemingly out of nowhere after setting up iCloud Contacts on your Mac for the first time. Unless you intentionally keep certain information for the same contact separated out for whatever reason, duplicate...

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How to Use iCloud Keychain on Your iOS Devices

Wednesday February 7, 2018 3:08 pm PST by Tim Hardwick

iCloud Keychain is a feature of your Apple account that you can use to keep your website login credentials, personal details, credit card details, and wireless network information up to date and available across all your Apple devices. With so many usernames and passwords to remember these days, iCloud Keychain provides a convenient way of always having this information at hand. And with its...

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How to Sign Up for iCloud Family Storage Plans in iOS 11

Thursday September 21, 2017 4:19 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Apple's Family Sharing feature allows you to share music, movies, apps, photos, and more with family members, and in iOS 11, Family Sharing extends to Apple's iCloud Storage plans. When you purchase a 200GB or 2TB iCloud Storage plan, all members of your family can share the storage space. Depending on how many family members you have, family plans offer more storage at a better price than...

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How to Use iCloud Photo Library in Photos to Sync Pictures Between Devices

Tuesday April 28, 2015 11:56 am PDT by Lory Gil

iCloud Photo Library was introduced with iOS 8, but with the launch of the Photos for OS X app, it's now available on the Mac. In a nutshell, iCloud Photo Library is Apple's newest photo service that lets you sync all of your images across all your devices and to iCloud. iCloud Photo Library supports several photo and video formats, storing photos in their original format, and it makes all...

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iCloud Articles

iCloud+ Now Includes Apple TV, Apple Arcade, and Curated Apple Music Stations in Over 100 Countries

Tuesday September 15, 2026 1:43 am PDT by Tim Hardwick

Apple today announced a new subscription initiative that turns paid iCloud+ subscriptions into a broader services bundle in more than 100 countries. In select countries, Apple says every paid iCloud+ plan, including the cheapest 50GB tier, now includes Apple TV and Apple Arcade "at no additional cost," while family sharing extends the storage, TV and Arcade access to up to five people....

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Apple Won't Change Hide My Email Domain After Backlash

Monday August 24, 2026 1:17 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Apple today said it is reversing its decision and will not change the email domain used for the iCloud+ Hide My Email feature. Emails sent using Hide My Email will continue to use the same icloud.com domain that Apple uses for standard ‌iCloud‌ emails. In June, Apple said it would unify the email domains used by Sign in with Apple and Hide My Email under a single private.icloud.com...

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iPhone Users Who Pay for Enough iCloud Storage Get New iOS 27 Perks

Tuesday August 11, 2026 8:24 am PDT by Joe Rossignol

If you are subscribed to an iCloud+ plan with at least 2TB of storage, you will receive new perks in the Home app on iOS 27, according to Apple. Starting with iOS 27, Apple said iPhone users who are subscribed to an iCloud+ plan with at least 2TB of storage receive access to three new Apple Intelligence features in the Home app: generated video descriptions for HomeKit Secure Video cameras,...

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Apple Accused of 'Fraud' in iCloud Private Relay Class Action Lawsuit

Tuesday August 11, 2026 7:30 am PDT by Hartley Charlton

Apple is facing a proposed class action lawsuit accusing it of fraud and false advertising over a security flaw in iCloud Private Relay, according to 9to5Mac. The suit was filed by the Clarkson Law Firm, which accuses Apple of deceiving ‌iCloud‌+ subscribers with its marketing of Private Relay, the feature meant to shield a user's IP address and DNS records while browsing in Safari. The...

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Apple's iCloud Private Relay is Leaking Users' Real IP Addresses

Wednesday August 5, 2026 11:44 am PDT by Juli Clover

Apple's paid Safari protection feature that promises to keep your IP masked doesn't always work, according to security researchers Tommy Mysk and Talal Haj Bakry. It turns out iCloud Private Relay can expose your real IP to websites that use or pretend to use passkeys. ‌iCloud‌ Private Relay is a service included with paid ‌iCloud‌+ plans. It is supposed to hide your IP and DNS information...

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Apple Plans Paid iCloud+ Upgrades for Heavy AI Users

Thursday July 30, 2026 4:11 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Apple is planning to let users pay to increase their AI limits, with upgrade possibilities available through iCloud+. During today's earnings call for the third fiscal quarter of 2026, Apple CEO Tim Cook said it's early, but the company expects to offer options for people who want to make heavy use of AI services. In terms of what it means for compute cost, it's obviously early going for...

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Apple Raises iCloud+ Prices in 8 Countries

Friday July 17, 2026 11:56 am PDT by Juli Clover

Apple has increased the price of iCloud+ in Nigeria, Türkiye, Vietnam, Japan, Egypt, New Zealand, the Philippines, and Indonesia, according to an updated version of its iCloud support document. Price increases range from 11 percent to 55 percent depending on the plan and the country. Nigeria saw the biggest hike, and a 50GB plan is now ₦1,300, up from ₦900. Türkiye saw the next largest...

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iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Get Two New Perks on iOS 27

Thursday July 2, 2026 6:10 am PDT by Joe Rossignol

If you pay for certain iCloud+ storage plans beyond the 5GB that Apple offers for free, you will receive two more perks on iOS 27 at no additional cost. A summary of the two new iCloud+ perks on iOS 27:Increased daily usage limits for some new Apple Intelligence features, including image generation in the revamped Image Playground app. HomeKit Secure Video cameras receive generated video...

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UK iCloud Users Could Claim £77 Each as Apple Case Heads to Trial

Tuesday June 23, 2026 1:49 am PDT by Tim Hardwick

A class action lawsuit accusing Apple of overcharging U.K. iCloud users has been certified to go ahead, putting the £3 billion ($3.9 billion) claim on track for a trial in October 2028. According to BBC News, the Competition Appeal Tribunal cleared consumer group Which? to bring the case on behalf of an estimated 40 million U.K. iPhone and iPad owners, each of whom could receive up to £77...

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Apple's New Hide My Email Domain Makes It Easier to Block iCloud Aliases

Wednesday June 17, 2026 7:41 am PDT by Hartley Charlton

Apple's decision to move Hide My Email to a dedicated "private.icloud.com" domain appears to have the consequence of making it easier for platforms that want to block iCloud aliases to do so. Apple is unifying the email domains used by Sign in with Apple and ‌iCloud‌+ Hide My Email under a single private.icloud.com domain later this summer. Sign in with Apple currently uses...

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iCloud+ Subscribers Get Higher Apple Intelligence Usage Limits in iOS 27

Tuesday June 9, 2026 6:05 am PDT by Hartley Charlton

Certain Apple Intelligence features in iOS 27 will carry daily usage limits, with iCloud+ subscribers receiving higher allowances than free users. The company reiterated the details in its press release accompanying yesterday's ‌Apple Intelligence‌ announcements. Apple said the limits apply to features that rely on "powerful server models," with image generation cited as the primary example. ...

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Apple Faces £3 Billion UK Trial Over iCloud Lock-In Claims

Thursday May 7, 2026 1:56 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Apple was not able to narrow the scope of a UK lawsuit accusing it of locking 40 million UK consumers into iCloud, to the detriment of third-party cloud storage providers. British consumer group Which? first filed the lawsuit in late 2024, and is asking for £3 billion for UK Apple customers. Apple wanted to exclude non-paying ‌iCloud‌ users from the lawsuit, but the tribunal denied Apple's...

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iOS 26.4.1 Includes These Two Changes for iPhones

Saturday April 11, 2026 9:19 am PDT by Joe Rossignol

Apple has released a minor iOS 26.4.1 update for the iPhone 11 and newer. While the release notes for the update only mention unspecified "bug fixes," we have since learned about two specific changes that are included in it. First, 9to5Mac spotted an Apple Developer Forums thread suggesting that iOS 26.4.1 fixes an iOS 26.4 bug that affected iCloud syncing in some apps. Second, an...

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Apple Questions Funding Behind UK iCloud Lawsuit

Wednesday November 19, 2025 9:33 am PST by Hartley Charlton

Apple today challenged the funding behind a $4 billion UK lawsuit during a tribunal hearing, raising new concerns about the iCloud class action as the company battles further antitrust scrutiny. The case was initiated by consumer group Which on behalf of consumers, alleging that Apple's iCloud storage practices lock users into the service and cause them to pay more for cloud storage than...

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Apple Highlights Five Perks for iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage

Monday October 6, 2025 6:29 am PDT by Joe Rossignol

After launching new iPhones last month, Apple is promoting iCloud+ with a prominent banner on its home page, in a bid to boost its services revenue. In addition to more storage, all iCloud+ plans include five perks for iPhone users. As a refresher, iCloud includes 5GB of storage for free. If you want extra storage, you need to subscribe to an iCloud+ plan. In the United States, prices range...

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UK Government Issues New Order to Access iCloud User Data

Wednesday October 1, 2025 6:05 am PDT by Hartley Charlton

The UK government has issued a new request for Apple to provide access to encrypted iCloud user data, the Financial Times reports. The report reveals that, in early September, the UK Home Office demanded that Apple creates a way for officials to access encrypted ‌iCloud‌ backups. Unlike its previous order, the latest request focuses on the ‌iCloud‌ data of British citizens specifically....

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UK Reportedly Withdraws Demand to Access Encrypted iCloud User Data

Tuesday August 19, 2025 1:32 am PDT by Tim Hardwick

The British government has agreed to withdraw its controversial demand to access Apple users' encrypted iCloud data, according to the U.S. director of intelligence. Tulsi Gabbard said in a post on X (Twitter) the UK had dropped its plans to force Apple to provide a back door that would have "enabled access to the protected encrypted data of American citizens and encroached on our civil...

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iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Receive These Five Perks

Wednesday July 9, 2025 9:20 am PDT by Joe Rossignol

If you pay for iCloud storage on your iPhone, did you know that Apple offers you five perks beyond the extra storage space, at no additional cost? Here are the perks included with all iCloud+ plans:Private Relay keeps your Safari browsing history entirely private from network providers, websites, and even Apple. Hide My Email generates unique, random email addresses whenever needed. Hom...

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iCloud vs. AWS: Apple Has Considered Competing With Amazon in Cloud

Thursday July 3, 2025 11:19 am PDT by Joe Rossignol

Apple in recent years has considered competing with Amazon Web Services (AWS), according to The Information's Aaron Tilley. In a paywalled report today, Tilley said that Apple was actively discussing the idea into the first half of 2024, but he does not know whether the talks have continued. A supposed key backer of the idea, Michael Abbott, left Apple in 2023. Apple's potential cloud...

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Apple Hit With Class Action Lawsuit Over iCloud Backups

Wednesday June 18, 2025 5:49 am PDT by Hartley Charlton

Apple will face a proposed class action lawsuit in California federal court over allegations that iCloud unlawfully monopolizes iPhone users' access to core device backups, following a judge's decision to deny the company's motion to dismiss the case (via Reuters). Earlier this week, the Northern District of California ruled that plaintiffs had sufficiently amended their complaint to move...

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