Apple says it will allow iCloud backups to be fully encrypted

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/12/07/icloud-apple-encryption/
https://archive.ph/ojR5O

Apple says it will allow iCloud backups to be fully encrypted
Law enforcement has objected in the past to encrypting iCloud accounts
By Joseph Menn
December 7, 2022 at 1:00 p.m. EST

After years of delay under government pressure, Apple said Wednesday that it will offer fully encrypted backups of photos, chat histories and most other sensitive user data in its cloud storage system worldwide, putting them out of reach of most hackers, spies and law enforcement.

Apple has benefited for more than a decade from a perception that it does more than other phone and computer companies to safeguard privacy, including its use of end-to-end encryption for iMessages between Apple devices. Those can only be read on the devices, not by Apple, a phone service provider or police with a warrant.

But most iPhone and Mac computer owners back up their iMessages, photos and other content to Apple’s iCloud, where the company can retrieve it for locked-out users or authorities. That has also left the material open to hackers that have tricked customers out of their passwords, increasing the potential for embarrassment and even extortion.

Apple representatives said those threats, and increasing attempts to breach cloud providers, made end-to-end encryption in the cloud the best option for those most concerned about security.

In a second victory for privacy advocates, Apple said it was dropping a plan to scan user photos for child sex abuse images. The company had paused that plan shortly after its announcement last year, as security experts argued that it would intrude on user’s device privacy and be subject to abuse.