Apple said in a support document published on Tuesday that starting with version 27.3 of iOS, iPadOS, macOS and visionOS it will check items from iCloud Photos and iCloud Drive shared with the "Anyone with the Link" option for harmful content.
According to Apple, such sharing makes the content accessible to anyone who has the link, including Apple itself, and turns off end-to-end encryption for the item even if the owner or recipients have enabled Advanced Data Protection. Apple added that harmful content may be removed and that it may block accounts and, if necessary, involve law enforcement.
It is not yet clear what prompted the change, what Apple considers "harmful content", or whether the checks will apply to links created earlier. According to The Hacker News, the 27.3 updates are expected in December. Users who want to keep full encryption should share with specific people rather than through an open link.