West Virginia sues Apple over alleged iCloud role in child sexual abuse material

West Virginia Attorney General JB McCuskey filed a lawsuit in Mason County Circuit Court alleging Apple did not deploy industry-standard tools to detect child sexual abuse material on iCloud; the complaint cites internal messages and seeks orders to require scanning. Undetermined at this time.

West Virginia Attorney General JB McCuskey has filed a lawsuit alleging Apple did not use industry-standard tools to detect child sexual abuse material on iCloud. McCuskey said Apple reported far fewer incidents to law enforcement than other cloud services and argued the company prioritized privacy in ways that impeded detection. The complaint was filed in Mason County Circuit Court and asks the court to require Apple to begin scanning cloud storage. Apple responded that protecting users' safety and privacy, especially for children, is central to its work and highlighted existing safety features. Key points: - West Virginia filed the complaint in Mason County Circuit Court alleging Apple failed to deploy industry-standard scanning for child sexual abuse material on iCloud. - Attorney General JB McCuskey said Apple reported only hundreds of incidents compared with millions reported by some other companies. - The lawsuit cites internal messages attributed to former Apple anti-fraud chief Eric Friedman that are described as acknowledging the presence of such material in iCloud. - Apple issued a statement saying it works to protect children and described parental controls and safety features it offers. Summary: The suit raises legal questions about how iCloud is monitored for illegal material and challenges Apple's choices about privacy and detection. The case was filed in state court and seeks orders to require scanning; Undetermined at this time.