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Contents10
  1. Consumer-impact summary
  2. User Freedom
  3. User Privacy
  4. Business Model
  5. Market Share
  6. Incidents
  7. OS Level Age Verification (2026)
  8. Creator Studio (2026)
  9. See also
  10. References
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.[7] Following this legislation, Apple faces the possibility of a data breach similar to social media platforms like Discord, exposing the sensitive information of users.[8][9]

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 can come preinstalled with exclusive paid applications like Final Cut Pro and Logic 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.[10][11]

Apple’s Creator Studio combines one-time payment creative applications with previously free office applications for $12.99 monthly or $129 annually.

Market Share

macOS is a popular operating system in the desktop market. While Microsoft Windows’s popularity is more than half, Mac OS X (A previous version of macOS) 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.[12]

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.[13]

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.[11] The subscription includes both free applications as well as paid applications like Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro. A positive aspect of this subscription service that should not be rewarded (but still is due to other companies lowering the bar) that users who have purchased lifetime editions of the applications can continue to use them without subscribing.

One-time purchase version of Final Cut Pro
One-time purchase version of Logic Pro

See also

References

  1. ↑ Pareek, Divya (23 Jul 2025). "What is macOS?". Geeks for Geeks. Archived from the original on 3 Mar 2026. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  2. ↑ Jena, Satyabrata (23 Jul 2025). "Difference between Open source Software and Proprietary Software". Geeks for Geeks. Archived from the original on 20 Feb 2026. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  3. ↑ "Apple Privacy Policy". Apple. 30 Jul 2025. Archived from the original on 10 Mar 2026. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  4. ↑ Sherback, Ty (24 Dec 2024). "Apple Intelligence is a flop". XDA. Archived from the original on 13 Dec 2025. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  5. ↑ Patterson, Dan (12 Feb 2026). "These 4 critical AI vulnerabilities are being exploited faster than defenders can respond". ZDNET. Archived from the original on 17 Feb 2026. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  6. ↑ Miller, Katharine (18 Mar 2024). "Privacy in an AI Era: How Do We Protect Our Personal Information?". Stanford University. Archived from the original on 3 Mar 2026. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  7. ↑ Booth, Barbara (8 Mar 2026). "Online age-verification tools spread across U.S. for child safety, but adults are being surveilled". CNBC. Archived from the original on 9 Mar 2026. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  8. ↑ Chia, Osmond (9 Oct 2025). "ID photos of 70,000 users may have been leaked, Discord says". BBC. Archived from the original on 7 Mar 2026. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  9. ↑ Kelley, Jason (26 Jun 2024). "Hack of Age Verification Company Shows Privacy Danger of Social Media Laws". EFF. Archived from the original on 26 Feb 2026. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  10. ↑ "Apple Creator Studio". Apple. Archived from the original on 6 Mar 2026. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Cunningham, Andrew (28 Jan 2026). "Seven things to know about how Apple's Creator Studio subscriptions work". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on 5 Mar 2026. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  12. ↑ "Desktop Operating System Market Share United States Of America Feb 2025 - Feb 2026". Statcounter. 1 Feb 2026. Archived from the original on 28 Feb 2026. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
  13. ↑ Perez, Sarah (24 Feb 2026). "Apple rolls out age-verification tools worldwide to comply with growing web of child safety laws". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on 1 Mar 2026. Retrieved 9 Mar 2026.
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