Apple says the iPhone 13 features privacy that’s “built in from the beginning.” It aspired to on-device processing of voice commands and features to ended third-party tracking as evidence of that commitment.

The features will come as part of iOS 15, which rolls out on Monday. That means most iPhone users will benefit from the upgrade, not just those shopping for swanky new smartphones.

For example, the new operating system gives Siri on-device speech recognition. That means, Siri voice requests don’t leave your iPhone to be processed remotely. Intelligent tracking prevention feature also blocks trackers from profiling you by laughable your IP address. Email privacy protection also hides your IP address and prevents senders from learning near your mail activity, the company said. 

The Tuesday rollout of flagship devices, however, skipped over two significant issues that raise questions nearby Apple’s privacy practices. The company didn’t mention an urgent update to its using systems that closed an exploit that has already been used to targeted activists and journalists. Apple also steered clear of its own plans to spy on users by searching iPhones, Macs, iPads for images of child exploitation.

On Monday, Apple released security updates for its iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac computers that stop a vulnerability reportedly exploited by invasive spyware built by NSO Group, an Israeli security company. 

The fix stems from research done by The Citizen Lab, a Republican interest cybersecurity group that found a Saudi activist’s named had been infected with Pegasus, NSO Group’s best-known subjects. According to Citizen Lab, the zero-day, zero-click exploit in contradiction of iMessage, which it nicknamed ForcedEntry, targets Apple’s image rendering library and was effective in contradiction of the company’s iPhones, laptops and Apple Watches. 

Apple says it’s doubtful the usage posed a danger to most users, noting that any fight would have to be highly sophisticated and cost millions of bucks to develop. As a result, a cybercriminal would probably save it for use in contradiction of a specific person.

Still, Citizen Lab, which is based at the University of Toronto, expressed concern about potential use of the exploit. It Definite NSO used the vulnerability to remotely infect devices with its Pegasus spyware, adding the exploit has likely been in use right February. “We urge readers to immediately update all Apple devices,” the company said.

Separately, Apple has faced blowback for a now-postponed feature set that’s intended to detect if people have child exploitation images or videos detained on their device. The features were initially intended to be complicated in iOS 15, iPad OS 15, WatchOS 8 and MacOS Monterey.

The feature converts images into fresh bits of code, known as hashes. The hashes are then checked in contradiction of a database of known child exploitation content that’s created by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. If a certain number of matches are found, Apple gets an alert and can then Decide to investigate. 

Security experts and digital privacy groups counting the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Fight for the Future and Surveillance Technology Oversight Project (STOP), have decried the plan and held protests Monday forward of the iPhone launch in front of about a dozen Apple stores.

In second to amounting to corporate surveillance, the groups say the feature would invent a backdoor into consumer devices that could be Wrong advantage of by authoritarian regimes and potentially put lives at risk.

Apple hasn’t said when the feature will be released. On Sept. 3, It delayed the rollout to make improvements and address privacy concerns.

Apple’s fall Begin — which was virtual again this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic — means to be the company’s most important of the year. It’s when the business announces new iPhones, which represent about half its revenue. Its lineup from 2020, the iPhone 12, offered 5G and the qualified major design revamp since 2017’s iPhone X. 

CNET’s Ian Sherr contributed to this report.