The Electronic Frontier Foundation has said it is “satisfied” with Apple’s decision to delay the launch of its controversial child safety features, but now wants Apple to go further and abandon the launch entirely.
Apple said on Friday it was delaying planned features to “take more time in the coming months to gather information and make improvements,” following negative comments from a wide range of individuals and organizations, including security investigations, politicians, law groups. policies and even some Apple employees.
Planned features include scanning users’ iCloud photo libraries for child sexual abuse material (CSAM), communication security to warn children and their parents when they receive or send sexually explicit photos, and expanded guidance about CSAM in Siri and Search.
In its response to the announced delay, the EFF said it was “pleased that Apple is now listening to the concerns” of users, but “the company must go beyond just listening and abandon its plans to put a back door on its fully encrypted. ‘ «
The statement from the digital rights group reiterated its earlier criticism of the planned features, which it has called “a decrease in privacy for all iCloud Photos users, not an improvement,” and warned that Apple’s decision to scan messages and iCloud Photos could be legally required by authoritarian governments to include additional materials.
He also highlighted the negative reaction to the plans announced by Apple by pointing to a series of petitions that have been organized in opposition to the planned measure.
Responses to Apple’s plans have been damning: More than 90 organizations around the world have urged the company not to implement them, fearing that they will lead to censorship of protected speech, threaten the privacy and safety of people in all over the world and have disastrous consequences for many children. This week, EFF’s petition to Apple demanding they abandon their plans reached 25,000 signatures. This is in addition to other requests from groups such as Fight for the Future and OpenMedia, which total more than 50,000 signatures. The huge coalition that has spoken out will continue to demand that users’ phones, both their messages and their photos, be protected, and that the company keep its promise to provide real privacy to its users.
The child safety feature set was originally set to debut in the United States with an update to iOS 15, iPadOS 15, watchOS 8, and macOS Monterey. It’s unclear when Apple plans to roll out the “critically important” features or how it intends to “improve” them in light of so much criticism, but the company still seems determined to implement them in some way.
–
