Apple Officially Cancels Its Plans to Scan iCloud Photos for Child Abuse Material

Apple has formally killed certainly one of its most controversial proposals ever: a plan to scan iCloud photographs for indicators of kid sexual abuse materials (or, CSAM).

Yes, final summer season, Apple introduced that it will be rolling out on-device scanning—a brand new function in iOS that used superior tech to quietly sift by means of particular person customers’ pictures for indicators of unhealthy materials. The new function was designed in order that, ought to the scanner discover proof of CSAM, it will alert human technicians, who would then presumably alert the police.

The plan instantly impressed a torrential backlash from privateness and safety specialists, with critics arguing that the scanning function might finally be re-purposed to hunt for different kinds of content material and that even having such scanning capabilities in iOS was a slippery slope in direction of broader surveillance abuses. The common consensus was that it might shortly turn into a backdoor for police.

At the time, Apple fought laborious towards the criticism, however the firm finally relented and, not lengthy after it initially introduced the brand new function, it stated that it will “postpone” implementation till a later date.

Now, it seems like that date won’t ever come. On Wednesday, amidst bulletins for a bevy of latest iCloud safety options, the corporate additionally revealed that it will not be transferring ahead with its plans for on-device scanning. In an announcement shared with Wired journal, Apple made it clear that it had determined to take a special route:

After intensive session with specialists to collect suggestions on little one safety initiatives we proposed final yr, we’re deepening our funding within the Communication Safety function that we first made accessible in December 2021. We have additional determined to not transfer ahead with our beforehand proposed CSAM detection instrument for iCloud Photos. Children might be protected with out corporations combing by means of private knowledge, and we’ll proceed working with governments, little one advocates, and different corporations to assist defend younger folks, protect their proper to privateness, and make the web a safer place for youngsters and for us all.

Apple’s plans appeared well-intentioned. CSAM’s digital proliferation is a major problem—and specialists say that it has solely gotten worse lately. Obviously an effort to remedy such a disaster is was a superb factor. That stated, the underlying expertise Apple had steered utilizing—and the surveillance risks it posed—have been simply not the fitting instrument to perform that.