9 Essential iPhone Settings To Turn Off For Data Privacy

Your iPhone is a powerful device, but it also holds a vast amount of your personal information. Many features, designed for convenience, track your data in ways you might not realize. Apple markets itself as privacy-focused, yet many privacy-sensitive settings are enabled by default.

Taking a few minutes to adjust these settings can significantly enhance your digital security and give you greater control over your data.

Through this blog post our iPhone service experts at Smashed It Auckland will walk you through 9 crucial iPhone settings that, when turned off or adjusted, can significantly enhance your data privacy.

Table of Contents

1. Stop Personalized Ads

Apple uses your data to serve you targeted ads in the App Store, Apple News, and Stocks. Even though Apple considers them “privacy-friendly,” they still build a profile based on your behavior. You can limit this tracking.

To Disable Personalized Ads:

Go to Settings → Privacy & Security → Apple Advertising.
Toggle off “Personalized Ads”.
Why? This prevents Apple from using your app activity, location, and purchases for ad targeting.

2. Restrict Location Tracking

Many apps track your location even when you’re not actively using them. It’s crucial to manage location access for each app.

To Limit Location Access for Apps:

Go to Settings → Privacy & Security → Location Services.
Review the list of apps and change permissions to “While Using the App” or “Never” instead of “Always” for apps that don’t need constant access.
Disable “Precise Location” for apps that don’t require it (e.g., weather apps might not need your exact location).

2.1. Further Location Privacy Settings

Scroll down to System Services within Location Services. Disable “Significant Locations”. You can also review and clear your history here.

Why? Apple uses your frequent locations to provide “personalized” services, meaning it knows where you sleep, eat, and work.

Disable “iPhone Analytics”. Why? This setting sends usage data to Apple.

3. Stop Apps from Tracking You Across Other Apps

Some apps, like social media platforms, track your activity across other apps and websites for advertising purposes.

To Block App Tracking Requests:

Go to Settings → Privacy & Security → Tracking.
Toggle off “Allow Apps to Request to Track”.

Why? This prevents apps from accessing your advertising ID, which is used to profile you. You can also review and manually disable tracking for apps that have already requested permission in this section.

4. Disable Analytics & Improvements

Apple collects data about how you use your iPhone to enhance its products and services. While this data is anonymized, you might prefer to keep your usage patterns private.

To Stop Sharing iPhone Analytics:

Open Settings.
Tap Privacy & Security.
Scroll down and select Analytics & Improvements.
Toggle off Share iPhone Analytics.

Why? Disabling this setting prevents your iPhone from sending usage data to Apple, enhancing your data privacy.

5. Disable Siri Data Collection

iPhone screen showing the Siri & Dictation History settings with the option to delete Siri data to disable Siri data collection.

Siri learns from your usage, which means Apple stores your voice data.

To Limit Siri Data Collection:

Go to Settings → Siri & Search.
Turn off “Listen for ‘Hey Siri'” if you don’t use this feature.
Disable “Siri Suggestions” in apps you want to keep private.
Go to Siri & Dictation History and tap “Delete Siri & Dictation History”.
Go back to Siri & Search and toggle off “Improve Siri & Dictation”.

Why? This limits the storage and review of your Siri and dictation recordings by Apple.

6. In-App Rating & Reviews

This setting allows apps to prompt you for ratings and reviews. To turn it off go Settings > App Store. From there switch off In-App Rating & Reviews.

iPhone App Store settings screen highlighting the In-App Ratings & Reviews toggle, which controls feedback prompts within apps.

7. Manage Push Notifications

Push notifications allow apps to send you alerts even when you’re not actively using them. While some notifications are helpful, others can be intrusive and may compromise your privacy. It’s advisable to control which apps can send you notifications.

To Disable Push Notifications for Specific Apps:

Open Settings.
Tap Notifications.
Scroll through the list and select the app you want to manage.
Toggle off Allow Notifications to stop all notifications from that app.

Why? Disabling unnecessary push notifications reduces distractions and limits the amount of data apps can access and display on your device. This enhances both your privacy and overall user experience.

8. Disable Background App Refresh

Background App Refresh lets apps update their content in the background, even when you’re not using them. While convenient, this can use data and potentially expose your activity.

iPhone settings screen showing Background App Refresh turned off, with a list of apps like Facebook and Bumble underneath.

To Turn Off Background App Refresh for Specific Apps:

Open Settings.
Tap General.
Select Background App Refresh.
You can either:
- Toggle Background App Refresh off entirely (for all apps), or
- Scroll through the list and switch off individual apps you want to restrict.

Why? Disabling this saves battery life, reduces data use, and limits apps’ ability to access information when you’re not actively using them, improving your privacy and device performance.

9. Disable iCloud Syncing (If Not Needed)

iCloud backs up your data, but you might not want everything synced, especially if you rarely use certain features.

To Manage iCloud Syncing:

Go to Settings → [Your Name] → iCloud.
Toggle off syncing for apps like Notes, Safari, Keychain, etc., if you don’t actively use iCloud for these services.
Consider enabling “Advanced Data Protection” (in iCloud settings) for end-to-end encryption of most of your iCloud data. Be aware of the recovery key implications.

By making these adjustments, you’ll take significant steps toward enhancing your iPhone’s data privacy and ensuring that your personal information remains secure.

Bonus Privacy Tips Beyond Settings

Lock Down Photo Access: Limit apps from seeing your entire photo library. Go to Settings → Privacy & Security → Photos and change each app’s access to “Selected Photos” or “None” instead of “All Photos”. Most apps don’t need full access to function properly.
Secure Your Lock Screen: Prevent sensitive info from showing when your phone is locked. Go to Settings → Face ID & Passcode (or Touch ID & Passcode) and under “Allow Access When Locked,” disable options like “Today View and Search,” “Control Center,” “Wallet,” “Reply with Message,” and “Live Activities.” This stops others from seeing personal data or interacting with certain features without unlocking your phone.
Block Email Tracking in Mail: Stop senders from knowing when you open emails. Go to Settings → Mail → Privacy Protection and enable “Protect Mail Activity.” This hides your IP address and prevents open tracking.
Use a Private Wi-Fi Address: Prevent Wi-Fi networks from tracking your device across sessions. Go to Settings → Wi-Fi → tap the “ℹ️” next to your network and enable “Private Wi-Fi Address.” This randomizes your MAC address to enhance privacy.
Disable NameDrop (iOS 17+): Prevent accidental contact sharing when near other iPhones by going to Settings → General → AirDrop → NameDrop → Off.
Enable Lockdown Mode (For Extreme Privacy): This disables many features but provides maximum security against spyware and advanced attacks. Find it in Settings → Privacy & Security → Lockdown Mode.
Use Safari’s Privacy Features: In Settings → Safari, enable “Prevent Cross-Site Tracking” and select “Hide IP Address” (choose “From Trackers”).
Disable Keyboard Analytics: Stop Apple from collecting your typing habits in Settings → General → Keyboard → Turn off “Share Keyboard Analytics”.
Use a VPN for Public Wi-Fi: Consider using a trusted VPN to avoid hackers on public networks.
Turn Off Device and iCloud Analytics: In Settings → Privacy & Security → Analytics & Improvements, toggle off all options, including “Share iPhone & Watch Analytics” and “Improve Health & Activity”. Also, disable “iCloud Analytics” here.
Restrict App Access to Bluetooth: Control which apps can use Bluetooth in Settings → Privacy & Security → Bluetooth. Toggle off for apps that don’t need it.
Regularly Audit App Permissions: Check what permissions each app has in Settings → Privacy & Security. Revoke unnecessary access.
Choose a Strong Passcode and Shorten Auto-Lock Time in Settings → Face ID & Passcode (or Touch ID & Passcode) and Settings → Display & Brightness → Auto-Lock respectively.
Utilize the App Privacy Report: See how often apps access your data in Settings → Privacy & Security → App Privacy Report.
Embrace Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) for your Apple ID in Settings → [Your Name] → Password & Security and all other important accounts.
Disable Apple Intelligence (if desired) in Settings → Apple Intelligence & Siri Settings.
Lock and Hide Apps using Face ID or Touch ID via App Library → Hidden Folder.
Avoid Jailbreaking your iPhone as it compromises security.
Be Mindful of What You Share with apps and online services.
Leverage Safety Check in Settings → Privacy & Security → Safety Check if your safety is at risk.

Final Thoughts

Apple provides you with a significant amount of control over your privacy. However, many of the settings that enhance your privacy are not enabled by default. By taking the time to adjust these essential settings, you can significantly reduce tracking and keep your personal data more secure.

Protecting your privacy is an ongoing effort, so regularly reviewing your settings and staying informed about new privacy features is key. Take a few minutes today to explore these options – it’s an investment in your digital well-being.