According to Reuters, Apple dropped plans to let iPhone users fully encrypt backups of their devices in the company’s iCloud service after the FBI complained that the move would harm investigations. The tech giant’s reversal, about two years ago, has not previously been reported. It shows how much Apple has been willing to help U.S. law enforcement and intelligence agencies, despite taking a harder line in high-profile legal disputes with the government and casting itself as a defender of its customers’ information.
Encrypting data is essential and companies usually offer help and support when protecting data, so this news comes as a shock to me. However, it doesn’t mean your back-up and data can’t be encrypted. You will still be able to make an encrypted back-up on your home computer and store it there. As always, users should also be reminded that their data needs to be protected with a strong and complex password.
The balance between law enforcement and tech companies protecting data comes into question quite often. However, this balance is extremely difficult to fine-tune. Typically, users want the easiest route if they care about their data security, so encryption should be handed to them on a plate.