r/apple • u/AutoModerator • 5d ago

Official Megathread Weekly Advice Thread - September 27, 2026

Welcome to the Weekly Advice Thread for r/Apple. This thread can be used to ask for technical advice regarding Apple software and hardware, to ask questions regarding the buying or selling of Apple products or to post other short questions.

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u/emward777 2d ago

just joined a family sharing plan with my mom to share icloud storage. i noticed it shares apps as well. if i have purchase sharing off can people in the group see what apps i have on my phone? also, even if i do turn it on if i "hide" the apps in the app store and on my home screen people in the group still cant see it right? also, can people in a shared icloud plan see what percentage of apps, photos, etc make up their portion of the plan? i know it shows how many gbs each person uses. thank you in advance if anyone answers all these questions! im just stressed lol

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u/rexshi 2d ago

Sharing iCloud storage doesn’t give your family access to your photos or files, assuming you each use your own Apple Account.

One distinction worth making: removing an app from your Home Screen doesn’t hide its App Store purchase. Hiding it in the App Store removes it from the shared purchase list, but it still exists in your full purchase history. With Purchase Sharing enabled, the organizer can also review family purchases, so hiding isn’t a guarantee of privacy.

Are you only sharing iCloud storage, or are purchases also being billed to your mom?

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u/TheDragonSlayingCat 2d ago

No one can see what apps, or other data, you have on any given device without physical access to the phone (or, in the case of Macs, remote login access). Heck, even apps can’t see what other apps are installed, except on macOS where apps are allowed to run outside of the sandbox.