Apple's iCloud Private Relay, which protects paid iCloud users from online tracking, has experienced a service outage that affected major markets, limiting users' access to web services and apps that rely on an internet connection.
TechCrunch understands that iCloud Private Relay downtime has been affecting some Apple users in markets including Europe, India, Japan, and the U.S. since at least Thursday. The sporadic outages have left users unable to access the web in Safari browser and are reporting internet connectivity issues with installed apps.
Apple's System Status webpage recently notes an iCloud Private Relay outage, noting that some users may experience “slow or unavailable” service.
Launched specifically for iCloud+ subscribers in 2021, iCloud Private Relay protects Apple users from online trackers by encrypting the traffic that passes through their devices. The DNS service uses two separate Internet relays to send requests, limiting web trackers and Internet service providers from profiling users by combining IP addresses, locations, and browsing activity. It uses the Oblivious DNS-over-HTTPS protocol, which Apple designed in collaboration with Cloudflare in 2020.
If you are affected by the ongoing iCloud Private Relay outage, you can temporarily turn off the service by going to Settings > Profiles > iCloud > Private Relay.
Apple did not respond to a request for comment.
