Apple iOS 16 Hidden system exposure: more accurate detection of user countries to limit specific features
CTOnews.com, April 26 (Xinhua)-- according to foreign media 9to5Mac, Apple has been testing a new and more modern hiding feature in iOS 16, which can be limited according to the location of users.
According to the report, Apple currently uses hard-coding technology to limit iOS functions in specific locations, which means that most of the restrictions are only related to the area of the device, whether through software settings or hardware sources. But the company has been working on a new and smarter way to pinpoint the location of users.
According to foreign media, a new system called "countryd" has been quietly added to iOS 16.2, but it has not been actively used so far. It combines data such as the current GPS location, the country code from the Wi-Fi router, and the information obtained from the SIM card to determine the country where the user is located.
Combined with all this information, it will be more difficult for users to bypass these restrictions. But at the same time, when users travel to another region, the device is more likely to automatically ignore these restrictions.
As early as December last year, Bloomberg reported that Apple had been planning to allow side loading on the iOS for the first time because of pressure from the European Union. (CTOnews.com Note: side loading is the installation of third-party applications by means other than the official store App Store)
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman recently said that although Apple still plans to allow side loading on the iOS 17, the feature will not be available anywhere outside Europe. With the new "countryd" system, Apple will be able to easily determine whether the device is used in EU countries to allow side loading.
Of course, if Apple is also forced to allow side loading in other countries, a simple update to the system can enable this feature in other regions.
It is unclear how or whether Apple will announce side loading as a new iOS feature. The company will release iOS 17 and other new versions of the operating system on WWDC 2023 in June.
