Apple’s New ‘Tap to Cash’ Feature Coming in iOS 18 – CNET [CNET]

Tapping your iPhone to someone else’s iPhone or Apple Watch will quickly send them cash.

Apple Wallet capabilities are expanding, with a new feature allowing you to not only tap your phone at payment terminals but now also tap someone else’s iPhone or Apple Watch to pay them.

Announced during Apple’s annual WWDC event Monday morning, “Tap to Cash” will be coming with iOS 18 and WatchOS 11, and is similar to using AirDrop to quickly send a photo or message and NameDrop to send your contact information to others.

“Continuing on our journey to replace your physical wallet, we’re introducing Tap to Cash, a quick and private way to exchange Apple Cash without sharing phone numbers or email addresses,” said Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of software engineering. “With Tap to Cash, you can pay someone back for dinner just by holding your phones together.”

Apple gave the feature only a very brief mention during WWDC, not going into any potential security risks beyond simply calling it “private” and saying you won’t have to share personal details to use the feature.

Also announced for iOS 18 during WWDC were customizable home and lock screens with different widgets, an updated control center, a new password manager app, a redesigned Photos app, Genmojis and Notes app upgrades.