I attempted to blur a face on iOS 27, but my iPhone ended up providing a new one instead.

      Apple introduced the Clean Up feature with the iOS 18.1 update, primarily designed to eliminate unwanted objects from images. It can also be utilized to obscure faces in photos—simply circle a face in the image, and it automatically blurs it. Apple refers to this as Identity protection.

      With the launch of the iOS 27 update, Apple has enhanced the Clean Up feature, allowing it to tackle more intricate scenes. However, this improvement comes with a drawback. In the initial beta version, the face-hiding capability is malfunctioning. Instead, it produces results that are both humorous and concerning.

      What occurs when you blur a face in iOS 27?

      I stumbled upon this issue inadvertently while preparing a photo for posting and attempted to blur a face. I opened a photo, selected the Clean Up tool, and circled a face as usual. During my first few tries, the app misled me.

      It stated that identity protection had been applied, but as shown in the screenshot, the face remained clearly visible. In an attempt to get it to work, I painted over the face with my finger. That’s when something strange occurred.

      Instead of simply blurring or eliminating the face, the app generated an entirely new one. Yes, it provided the individual in the photo with a different face, and it executed this so convincingly that anyone I showed the picture to wouldn’t be able to discern that the original face had been substituted with an AI-generated version.

      To ensure I wasn’t imagining things or encountering a rare glitch, I tried this with multiple images of different individuals, and the same outcome occurred each time. If I circled a face, it would incorrectly inform me that the face had been blurred; however, if I painted over it, it would create a completely new face.

      I understand this is the first developer beta, so bugs are anticipated, but this is not just a glitch; it appears to be a case of AI hallucination. Since Apple is leveraging Gemini models to train its Apple Foundation Models, it seems to be inheriting some of the undesirable characteristics as well.

      It’s widely known that many AI models, including Google Gemini, are prone to hallucinations, which might explain the situation here.

      What should you do for the time being?

      The positive news is that this is the initial developer beta, so there's a good chance Apple will resolve this before the public beta is released in July. If you depend on this feature for blurring faces, I recommend avoiding the beta and sticking with iOS 26 for now, where the blur function still operates as expected.

      If you’re already using iOS 27 and need to obscure a face right now, your best option is to revert to the old method of using emojis to cover faces in photos. I’ve submitted feedback to Apple via the Feedback app, and I encourage you to do the same if you encounter this issue.

      The more reports Apple receives early on, the better the chances of fixing this before the public release. A tool intended to safeguard people’s privacy shouldn’t be generating new identities instead, and I hope this is a hallucination that Apple resolves swiftly.