In a recent reversal of policy, Apple has announced the company will not be searching iCloud data for content related to CSA and other illegal acts.
In a recent reversal of policy, Apple has announced the company will not be searching data stored on iCloud for material related to child sexual abuse and other illegal acts. The news follows multiple complex challenges Apple has faced related to data storage and user rights as they pertain to law enforcement. Most famously, the company refused to decrypt the iPhone of the accused San Bernardino shooter in 2016, sparking a lengthy legal battle with the FBI. Courts ultimately ruled that Apple could not be compelled to violate its security without customer consent, though it became academic in the San Bernardino case when the FBI got the phone’s password from another source.
Other cases of law enforcement seeking access to Apple products in violation of its TOS and obligation to its users had arisen before.
