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The Third-Party-Integration Edition Thursday, March 20, 2025

EU Orders Apple To Open Up Access To iOS Notifications, Allow Alternatives To AirDrop And AirPlay, by Benjamin Mayo, 9to5Mac

Today’s announcement details exactly what third-party integrations the EU commission expects Apple to implement. This includes giving third-party devices access to iOS notifications, as well as way for companies to make like-for-like competitors to AirDrop file sharing, AirPlay streaming, and much more.

The list of features that the EU commission has ordered Apple to implement is vast, as well as signalling that any future Apple features with first-party hardware integrations must also be made available to third-party companies.

Apple Says EU Interoperability Requirements Enables Unfettered Access To The iPhone, Risks Customer Security And Privacy, by Benjamin Mayo, 9to5Mac

Apple said “Today’s decisions wrap us in red tape, slowing down Apple’s ability to innovate for users in Europe and forcing us to give away our new features for free to companies who don’t have to play by the same rules. It’s bad for our products and for our European users. We will continue to work with the European Commission to help them understand our concerns on behalf of our users”.

In regards to customer privacy, Apple is especially concerned with the requirements surrounding opening up access to the iOS notification system. The company indicated these measures would allow companies to suck up all user notifications in an unencrypted form to their servers, sidestepping all privacy protections Apple typically enforces.

On Security

PSA: This Is One Of The Most Sophisticated Phishing Attacks Ever Made Against Mac Users, by Ben Lovejoy, 9to5Mac

The core method of the attack is nothing new: a website popup window masquerading as a security alert. But what enables this particular attack to fool so many people is that it uses malicious code to cause the webpage you are viewing to freeze. That lends credibility to the popup claim that the computer has been locked.

Stuff

Apple Pay With Express Transit Mode Now Accepted On San Diego Transit, by Tim Hardwick, MacRumors

The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) and the North County Transit District (NCTD) are now accepting Apple Pay with Express Transit Mode, according to local transport agencies.

Understand Calendar App Time Zone Support To Avoid Scheduling Mishaps, by Adam Engst, TidBITS

Every time I travel, I vow to figure out exactly how time zone support works in calendar apps, and every time, I get caught up in whatever I’m doing and forget. Now it’s time to buckle down and see if I can wrap my head around the topic.

Notes

This iOS 18.4 Feature Confirms: Apple Is Working On Something Big, by Mahmoud Itani, Macworld

Upon entering the recipe catalog on my iPad for the first time, I was immediately struck by its user interface. The tab features gigantic buttons with noticeably large touch targets not seen in other native iPad apps. It feels like an experimental sneak peek of the HomePad’s interface rather than software specifically designed for the iPad.

Bottom of the Page

Out of all the defences Apple has to make regarding its business model, the weakest arguments, I feel, are third-party integration with non-phone devices (such as watches and earphones) and first-party competing apps (such as Apple Music and Apple Books).

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Thanks for reading.