What to Know
- App Tracking Transparency is a feature that allows you to control how apps track you.
- When opening apps for the first time, you'll be asked whether or not you want to allow the app to track you.
- Choosing Ask App Not to Track will prevent the app from tracking your activity.
Apple's App Tracking Transparency feature allows you to opt out of allowing apps to track your activity across other apps and websites. In this guide we'll show you what to do to opt out of tracking, even if you're not yet getting these App Tracking Transparency notifications.
Jump To:
- How to Opt Out of App Tracking
- How to Turn off Tracking for Individual Apps
- Why You Are Not Getting App Tracking Notifications
- FAQ
How to Opt Out of App Tracking
If you don’t want apps to track your activity across other apps and websites, the process to opt out is as simple as can be. Keep in mind, though, that you will only see this notification the first time you open the app. Here's how to stop tracking on the iPhone:
- Open an app that has app tracking. You usually won't know until you open the app for the first time.
![iphone search with a red box around shipt app]()
- You will see a pop up asking for permission to track your activity.
![iphone app tracking pop up asking the user if they want to allow the app to track them, with a red box around the pop up]()
- Tap Ask App Not to Track to opt out of tracking for this app.
![iphone app tracking pop up asking the user if they want to allow the app to track them, with a red box around ask app not to track]()
- Tap Allow if you want to allow the app to track you. I do not recommend this option.
![iphone app tracking pop up asking the user if they want to allow the app to track them, with a red box around allow]()
That's how to turn off app tracking on the iPhone. Now, you’re opted out of tracking for this particular app. For more great iOS security advice, be sure to sign up for our free Tip of the Day newsletter.
How to Turn off Tracking for Individual Apps
If you allowed an app to track you but have had second thoughts, now you can turn tracking off for individual apps from Settings. Find out how to find the Ask App Not to Track settings on your iPhone.
Why You Are Not Getting App Tracking Notifications
While it was not required for developers to include App Tracking Transparency at first, Apple has now started enforcing the policy and booting noncompliant apps from the App Store.
If you're not seeing this App Tracking Transparency notification on apps that you know should be providing them already (we had this issue here at iPhone Life—a few users were not seeing notifications at all), make sure you have the latest versions of iOS and iPadOS to fix this bug. You should start seeing notifications form apps that have complied with the policy change, but you'll still have to wait for those slower-moving apps to institute the required changes, as mentioned above.
FAQ
- Can you prevent websites from tracking you? Just like you can stop apps from tracking you, you can prevent websites from tracking you as well. Check out our article on how to stop websites tracking you.
- Can Safari private browsing be traced? The short answer is that the only way to truly browse the web anonymously is by using a VPN. Check out our guide on private browsing in Safari for all the details.
- What does Private WiFi Address mean? Private WiFi Address is a feature on the iPhone that allows you to browse the internet with a bit more privacy. While it's not as private as using a VPN, our article on "what is Private WiFi Address?" can help you learn more.
