How to use the iPhone’s new App Privacy Report

Information is power, and if you’re an iPhone user, you can now get more information about how often your apps access your data (for example, your location or your microphone). The App Privacy Report, which became available with iOS 15.2, also lets you know each app’s web activity and what domains they attach to.

The feature is off by default, but if your phone has updated to iOS 15.2, it’s very simple to turn on:

• Go to Settings > Privacy > App Privacy Report (which will be at the bottom of the screen)
• Select “Turn On App Privacy Report”

After that, you can follow the same series of selections to see your report. (You can also use this Shortcut for quicker access right from your home screen or a Siri voice command.)

You won’t immediately see any data — it takes time for your phone to collect the data and assemble the report, but you can start to see results in just a few minutes. The report will let you know the following:

• Which apps accessed your data within the last seven days. If you tap on one of the apps listed, you will be able to see exactly when the last accesses were. You will probably have to drill down a couple of pages.

• App network activity. Tap on the app, and you’ll see which domains were contacted.

• Most contacted domains. Tap on each domain name, and you’ll get a list of which apps contacted that domain and when.

If for any reason you want to turn off the App Privacy Report, just go back to Settings > Privacy > Privacy Report and select “Turn Off App Privacy Report” at the bottom of the page. Be aware, however, that you will lose any existing information that you’ve collected up until then.