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Apple Sign In - Apple has removed private relay emails

Apple has removed all private relay emails associated with our service for users who signed in using Apple ID (this is an issue on Apple’s side that we cannot fix). As a result, we are currently unable to send you any emails, including informational messages and login code emails.

This issue began during Apple’s scheduled maintenance on May 3, 2025.

More details

On May 3, 2025, we faced a critical issue: “Sign in with Apple” stopped working properly for all users, resulting in the complete loss of access for one-third of our users-specifically, those using Apple’s private relay emails.

What exactly happened?

  • Apple began returning a completely new userIdentifier for existing Apple IDs, without users initiating any changes.
    This effectively made user authentication impossible, as we can no longer match users to their existing data.
  • The email field now always returns null. Although this behavior is typical for subsequent sign-ins, it’s irrelevant in this case because the userIdentifier itself changed, leaving no way to identify existing accounts.
  • Previously issued relay emails (@privaterelay.appleid.com) no longer accept emails-we verified this with bounce tests.
  • Users also report that our app has disappeared from their Apple ID’s authorized apps list.

Important context

  • We migrated our Apple Developer account from Individual to Organization about a year ago.
  • Everything worked perfectly until the May 3, 2025 update.
  • The incident occurred precisely on the day Apple released updates to the Developer Console (Accounts, Profiles, etc.). We strongly believe these internal changes at Apple triggered the issue.

Consequences

  • Every user received a new userIdentifier, meaning our system sees returning users as entirely new, breaking the link to their historical data.
  • One-third of our users, who registered via Apple’s private relay email, are now completely unreachable:
  • We can’t contact them (emails bounce).
  • We can’t restore their access (new IDs don’t match old accounts).
  • We have sent three support requests to Apple via email-no reply or acknowledgment yet, with no escalation path or live chat available.

🧠 We were fortunate because ASO.dev also supports an alternative sign-in method (email with a one-time login code). Without this alternative, we would’ve permanently lost access for every user who originally signed in with Apple.

We’re openly sharing this story to:

  • Warn developers who rely solely on Apple Sign-In and relay email addresses.
  • Connect with others who’ve faced similar issues-let’s share experiences.
  • Draw Apple’s attention to this critical problem-currently, there is no documented solution and no available support.

Never rely solely on Apple ID authentication.
Always implement a fallback method, as even major ecosystems can fail unpredictably.

Update

August 08, 2025 (3 months later)

It’s been three long months since the May 3 incident.
We’ve followed up with Apple multiple times, but never received any acknowledgment or explanation - not even a “we’re looking into it.”

And then… last week, without warning, everything just started working again.

  • The original userIdentifier values are back.
  • Previously unreachable users with Apple’s private relay email can now sign in normally.
  • Emails to old relay addresses no longer bounce.
  • Our app reappeared in the “Sign in with Apple” authorized apps list for affected users.

No notice. No release notes. No communication. Just poof, fixed.

We can only assume this was an internal Apple issue tied to their May updates - and that someone quietly rolled back or patched it.
While we’re relieved the problem resolved, the silence from Apple was the most concerning part.

Update

August 28, 2025 (+20 days)

It’s been almost four months since the May 3 incident.
We still haven’t received any response from Apple.
While preparing a newsletter for our user base, we discovered that some users are again unable to sign in with Apple ID using private relay emails or receive emails for accounts created before the May 3, 2025 incident.

Key takeaway:

If you depend on Apple Sign-In, always offer an alternative login method Systems - even from the biggest platforms — can fail in ways you can’t predict, with zero visibility or ETA for resolution.

We’re keeping our fallback sign-in option permanently.