How Apple’s iCloud Private Relay creates a shadow IT nightmare

One can make the argument that Apple created the phenomenon of shadow IT when it introduced the iPhone and the App Store. Suddenly managers and individual users had the ability to source their own business software and services, bypassing IT departments completely. And they could do so with devices not connected to a corporate network, preventing IT from even realizing shadow IT was happening in their organizations.

Apple did step in a couple of years later, providing an enterprise mobile device management (MDM) platform that allowed IT some control over devices in their organization. But to be effective, IT still needs to partner with line of business managers and individual users. After all, users can simply use devices not enrolled in MDM if they choose.

Fast forward a decade from the introduction of MDM, and Apple is again creating a potential shadow IT nightmare in the form of iCloud Private Relay.

What is iCloud Private Relay?

iCloud Private Relay is a new privacy feature in iOS 15 (available today but still in beta) for users with paid iCloud accounts, now known as iCloud+ accounts. And it is generally a good consumer privacy protection system.