Apple was sued for failing to implement tools to detect child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) in iCloud. The company had announced plans to scan iCloud for CSAM materials, but later abandoned them.
In 2021, Apple announcedwhich is developing a tool to detect CSAM on iCloud that would flag relevant images and notify the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. However, these plans have faced sharp criticism over privacy risks, and the company decided to refuse to implement them.
This caused another wave of frustration. That’s why last weekend a lawsuit was filed in Northern California seeking more than $1.2 billion in compensation for a potential group of 2,680 victims. The document alleges that after presenting child protection plans, Apple «failed to implement these solutions or any other measures to detect and limit the spread of CSAM», causing harm to victims as these materials continued to circulate.
Apple spokesperson Fred Sainz said the following in response:
«Child sexual abuse material is abhorrent, and we remain committed to combating actions that put children in harm’s way. We are urgently and actively working on innovations to combat these crimes without sacrificing the security and privacy of our users. For example, the «Communication Safety» feature warns children when they receive or attempt to send nude content, helping to break the chain of manipulation that leads to sexual abuse. We remain focused on building protections that will help prevent the spread of CSAM before it happens».
This lawsuit comes just a few months after the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) in the UK accused Apple of underestimating the extent of CSAM.
Source: Engadget
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