How to use Communication Safety on your Apple device

If your child receives or attempts to send photos or videos that might contain nudity, Apple’s Communication Safety warns them, gives them options to stay safe, and provides helpful resources.

Apple says that Communication Safety helps protect your child from viewing or sharing photos or videos that contain nudity.

• If Communication Safety detects that a child receives or is attempting to send this type of photo or video, it blurs the photo or video before your child can view it on their device.
• Communication Safety also provides guidance and age-appropriate resources to help them make a safe choice, including the choice to contact someone that they trust.

Communication Safety uses on-device machine learning to analyze photo and video attachments and determine if a photo or video appears to contain nudity. Because the photos and videos are analyzed on your child’s device, Apple doesn’t receive an indication that nudity was detected and doesn’t get access to the photos or videos as a result.

Communication Safety in Messages requires iOS 15.2 or later, iPadOS 15.2 or later, watchOS 9 or later, or macOS Monterey 12.1 or later. Communication Safety in other apps requires iOS 17, iPadOS 17, watchOS 10, or macOS Sonoma.

Communication Safety is available for child accounts signed in with their Apple ID and part of a Family Sharing group.

Turn Communication Safety on or off in Screen Time settings

Starting in iOS 17, iPadOS 17, watchOS 10, and macOS Sonoma, Communication Safety is turned on by default. You can adjust the Communication Safety setting for your child’s account in Screen Time settings.

1. Open Screen Time settings:
   • iPhone or iPad: Go to Settings > Screen Time.
   • Mac: Choose the Apple menu  > System Settings, then click Screen Time.

2. Select the name of a child in your family group.
3. Select Communication Safety.
4. Turn Check for Sensitive Photos on or off. You might need to enter the Screen Time passcode for the device.

Each time your child updates a device signed in with their Apple ID to iOS 17, iPadOS 17, or macOS Sonoma for the first time, Communication Safety is turned back on for all their devices.

If Communication Safety detects an image that appears to contain nudity

Communication Safety can detect nude photos and videos in these apps and services:

• On your child’s iPhone or iPad: Messages, AirDrop, Contact Posters in the Phone app, FaceTime video messages, and when your child selects a photo or video to share in some third-party apps.
• On your child’s Mac: Messages and when your child selects a photo or video to share in some third-party apps.
• On your child’s Apple Watch: Messages and Contact Posters in the Phone app.

If Communication Safety determines that a photo or video your child has received or is about to send appears to contain nudity, Communication Safety blurs the photo or video, displays a warning that it might be sensitive, and offers ways to get help.

Ways to get help

Communication Safety offers the child several ways to get help — including leaving the conversation, blocking the contact, leaving a group message, and accessing online safety resources — and reassures the child that it’s okay if they don’t want to view the photo or video, or if they want to leave the conversation.

Message someone they trust

As an additional precaution, the child has the option to message an adult that they trust about the photo or video. If the child is under 13, Communication Safety prompts the child to start a conversation with their parent or guardian.

If the child chooses to view or send a photo or video that contains nudity

If the child chooses to view or send the photo or video, Communication Safety confirms that they’re sure they want to do so and suggests alternatives, again reassuring the child that it’s okay not to participate and that more help is available.

(This how-to is based on my experiences and info on Apple’s support pages.)