Apple's "Web Eraser": Safari will soon be able to hide annoying web content
The Safari function was already controversial as a rumor, but now it's really coming. According to Apple, it is not intended as an ad blocker.
(Image: Sebastian Trepesch)
Pop-ups, registration forms, newsletter calls - the web is full of disruptions. A surprisingly announced Apple function should soon provide a remedy. The manufacturer is integrating what is known as "Distraction Control" into Safari 18 – part of iOS 18, iPadOS 18 and macOS 15 Sequoia. Users are given the option to simply hide annoying content on a website - permanently. This is done by simply clicking or tapping on the distracting elements.
As examples of things that can be hidden in this way, Apple cited login forms or all-too-common pop-ups in online stores that entice users with discounts for newsletter subscriptions. The unpopular cookie banners and GDPR consents should also be easy to suppress.
Apple: function is not an ad blocker
The function will be prominently integrated into the menu bar, as the company announced on Monday. Hidden web content can then be shown again at any time. Hiding is done manually by the user and must be done individually on each website. It also does not work across all devices: the settings for hidden content are not synchronized between iPhone and Mac, for example.
Distraction Control can be tested with fresh beta versions of iOS 18 & Co. Safari 18 is expected to be released to the public as an update in September.
During the announcement, Apple repeatedly emphasized that the feature was neither designed as an ad blocker nor capable of reliably removing advertising banners: Distraction Control cannot permanently remove constantly changing elements of a website – including advertising banners.
Latecomer with explosive power
The function had already caused a stir in the spring, although the innovation, which was known as "Web Eraser" at the time, was just a rumor. French and British media associations had positioned themselves against its introduction: It was a threat to ad-financed content and therefore also to publishers and journalists. The weakening of the business model endangered high-quality information and thus ultimately pluralism and democracy, wrote associations from the neighboring countries – the EU Commission was also informed.
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