I attempted to blur a face in iOS 27, but my iPhone provided a different result instead.

      Apple introduced the Clean Up feature with the iOS 18.1 update. While this feature primarily aimed to eliminate unwanted elements from photos, it also allowed users to obscure faces. By simply circling a face, it would automatically apply a blur effect. Apple referred to this as Identity Protection.

      With the iOS 27 update, Apple enhanced the Clean Up feature, enabling it to tackle more intricate scenes. However, this upgrade comes with a drawback. In the initial beta version, the face-hiding function is malfunctioning. Instead, it produces an outcome that is both amusing and concerning.

      What occurs when you blur a face in iOS 27?

      I discovered this accidentally while preparing a photo for sharing and attempted to blur out a face. I opened the photo, selected the Clean Up tool, and circled a face just as I had previously done. On the first few tries, the tool failed to deliver accurate results.

      It indicated that the identity protection had been applied. However, as evidenced in the screenshot, the face remained distinctly visible. To push the tool further, I decided to paint over the face with my finger. That’s when something unusual occurred.

      Instead of blurring the face or eliminating it, the tool generated an entirely new face. Yes, it created a new face for the individual in the photo, and it was so convincing that if I shared this image, nobody would recognize that the original face had been substituted with an AI-generated one.

      To ensure that I wasn’t experiencing a one-off situation, I tested this with various photos of different individuals, and the same result occurred each time. If I circled a face, the tool falsely claimed that the face had been blurred; if I painted over it, it generated a completely new face.

      I understand that this is the first developer beta, so some bugs are anticipated, but this issue appears to be a case of AI hallucination. It seems that since Apple is utilizing Gemini models to train its Apple Foundation Models, some undesirable aspects are also being carried over.

      We are aware that most AI models, including Google Gemini, have a track record of hallucinations, and this may be occurring here.

      What should you do for now?

      The positive note is that this is the initial developer beta, providing a good chance that Apple will address this before the public beta is released in July. If you depend on this feature to blur faces, I recommend avoiding the beta and sticking with iOS 26 for the time being, where the blur functionality operates as expected.

      If you are already using iOS 27 and need to obscure a face immediately, your safest option is to revert to the classic method of using an emoji to cover faces in photos. I have submitted feedback to Apple via the Feedback app, and I suggest you do the same if you encounter this issue.

      The more reports Apple receives early on, the higher the likelihood of this being resolved before the official release. A tool intended to safeguard individuals' privacy should not be creating new identities instead, and I hope this AI hallucination gets resolved swiftly by Apple.