What happens when you turn on Allow Search for iCloud.com
In iOS 26.4 or later, you can use your trusted Apple devices to provide search results for iCloud Drive and iCloud Photos on iCloud.com.
How it works
Starting in iOS 26.4, if you turn on data access for iCloud.com, you can also turn on Allow Search.* This lets you search your files in iCloud Drive or your photos in iCloud Photos on iCloud.com. To help you find what you're looking for, when you type in the search field you can see suggestions for:
filenames, folder names, and document types, for iCloud Drive.
dates, people, and locations, for iCloud Photos.
When you search Photos and Drive, your searches are encrypted and use on-device processing, so no search history is kept on Apple servers.
When your device is being used to provide search results, you also get a notification, up to one per day. Additionally, your device keeps a search report containing search queries from the last 28 days. At any time you can download or delete your search report on your device. If you get a notification that you don't expect, you can go to the iCloud.com settings on your device and turn off web access to your iCloud data or turn off search.
How to turn on Allow Search
To start a search on iCloud.com, you need Allow Data Access turned on. Then from your browser:
Go to iCloud.com. Select iCloud Drive or iCloud Photos.
In the search field, enter your search query.
Under Enable Search, click Connect Device.
Enter the verification code sent to your trusted devices, then tap Allow on your trusted device.
When prompted to Allow Search on iCloud.com, tap Allow on your trusted device.
Or go to iCloud.com settings on your device and turn on Allow Search.
* If you have a Managed Apple Account or use a phone number as your Apple Account, you can't turn on Allow Search for iCloud.com.