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Apple macOS

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Apple macOS
Basic Information
Release Year
Product Type Operating System
In Production Yes
Official Website https://support.apple.com/macos


Apple macOS (previously OS X and originally Mac OS X) is a proprietary operating system developed by Apple and shipped by default on Apple Macintosh computers. It succeeded Mac OS 9.[1]

Consumer-impact summary

User Freedom

Due to its nature of being a proprietary operating system, macOS has full access to a user's personal data and activities that are related to the device it is running on.[2] It is also practically impossible to audit what the system is doing with full access to the user’s system.

User Privacy

There are fewer reports of Apple selling user data than Windows, however Apple’s TOS states that they will share user data with third-parties for various reasons.[3] Since macOS has an unintentionally less bloated integration of artificial intelligence compared to Windows, it is more private and secure against both cloud and local model threats and security vulnerabilities.[4][5][6]

Also due to recent legislation mandating operating system providers to verify user age, Apple will be trusted with high amounts of sensitive user data such as credit cards and government-issued IDs. Following this, Apple faces the possibility of a data breach, exposing the sensitive information of users.

Business Model

Due to exclusivity of macOS to Apple hardware, macOS is completely free and included with Apple’s MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, MacBook Neo, Mac Mini, Mac Studio, iMac, and Mac Pro. While the operating system is free, it does come with exclusive applications like Logic Pro and Final Cut Pro. With the addition of the Apple Creator Studio suite, these one-time-purchase applications (along with previously free application, such as pages and keynote) have become a subscription service.[7][8]

Apple’s Creator Studio combines one-time payment creative applications with previously free office applications

Market Share

macOS is a popular operating system in the desktop market. While Microsoft Windows’s popularity is in the majority. Mac OS X and macOS itself are in 2nd and 3rd place in popularity respectively.

The macOS operating system is 3rd most popular in the United States desktop market.[9]

Incidents

This is a list of all consumer-protection incidents related to this product. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the Apple macOS category.

OS Level Age Verification (2026)

Apple requires users to upload a credit card in order to access features deemed by the OS as unsafe for children. This is Apple’s compliance with age verification legislation in certain countries and states.[10]

Creator Studio (2026)

Apple has moved all pre-installed free applications such as Pages, Keynote, and Numbers and requires new users to purchase a subscription to access these applications.[8]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Pareek, Divya (23 Jul 2025). "What is macOS?". Geeks for Geeks. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  2. ↑ Jena, Satyabrata (23 Jul 2025). "Difference between Open source Software and Proprietary Software". Geeks for Geeks. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  3. ↑ "Apple Privacy Policy". Apple. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  4. ↑ Sherback, Ty (24 Dec 2024). "Apple Intelligence is a flop". XDA Developers. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  5. ↑ Patterson, Dan (12 Feb 2026). "These 4 critical AI vulnerabilities are being exploited faster than defenders can respond". ZDNET. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  6. ↑ Miller, Katharine (18 Mar 2024). "Privacy in an AI Era: How Do We Protect Our Personal Information?". Stanford University. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  7. ↑ "Apple Creator Studio". Apple. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Cunningham, Andrew (28 Jan 2026). "Seven things to know about how Apple's Creator Studio subscriptions work". Arstechnica. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  9. ↑ "Desktop Operating System Market Share United States Of America Feb 2025 - Feb 2026". Statcounter. 1 Feb 2026. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  10. ↑ Perez, Sarah (24 Feb 2026). "Apple rolls out age-verification tools worldwide to comply with growing web of child safety laws". TechCrunch. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
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