New Delhi, Oct. 22 -- Apple's new Visited Places feature in iOS 26 sounds useful, but it's raising questions about privacy. The good news: it's not automatic. You have to turn it on yourself. The bad news: once you do, Apple Maps starts recording every place you visit like cafes, offices, parks, to improve route predictions and navigation accuracy.

The feature is opt-in only and not available in India yet, as mentioned in Apple's official iOS 26 footnotes. So unless you've manually enabled it in another region, your iPhone isn't storing any "Visited Places" data.

Once you enable it, Maps gains access to information about recently visited locations. The app uses that data to refine directions, show relevant recommendations, and learn you...