Liv McMahon
Technological journalist
Reuters
Apple made the headlines by drawing its most advanced data security tool for British customers.
It deletes advanced data protection (ADP) after the home office requested the right to be able to access the data to which it is applied – something even Apple itself cannot do today.
Rather than complying with this request, the technology giant said on Friday that it would stop new registrations in the United Kingdom to the tool and delete access to existing users on a later date.
This decision has aroused criticism of the actions of the British government – but also of confusion as to the protection of protection for customers of the United Kingdom Apple.
What is the advanced protection of Apple data?
ADP is an opt-in data security tool designed to provide users of devices such as iPhones with a more secure way to protect data stored in their iCloud accounts.
The elements, including backups, photos, notes and vocal memos, receive standard encryption by default.
Company may be ordered to hand over this data by the police.
ADP, on the other hand, applies an additional level of protection through what is called end -to -end encryption, which means that Apple cannot see or access the data – only the user can.
Because Apple has no key, losing access to your account can mean losing your data completely.
It also means that law enforcement organizations have no way to access this data either.
The tool is independent of the protections of blue messages sent with Imessage, passwords stored in iCloud Keychain, health application data and facetime, which are from end to default.
The Cyber Joe Tidy correspondent explains how the final encryption works
What does this mean for my iCloud data?
If you are in the United Kingdom and you have not turned on, you will not see any change in the way your data is protected due to Apple deactivation.
Your iCloud data will remain protected by standard encryption and, as before, can always be accessible by Apple.
But that means that you can no longer apply to protect iCloud storage with end -to -end encryption, even if you wish.
Meanwhile, the inhabitants of the United Kingdom who had an ADP activated before the change on Friday will lose access to a later date.
Apple has not said when, or how many British users will be affected.
Apple
British iPhone users have been greeted by advice on the advanced data protection parameters informing them that the tool cannot be activated.
Some experts have alarmed themselves on its withdrawal, saying that it would leave users less protected and that the overall consequences also have global consequences.
Graeme Stewart of the Cybersecurity Company Check Point said that this would not mean “a complete for all” because the police must have a mandate to request iCloud data.
But he said other governments could seek to reproduce Apple’s request from the United Kingdom for a so-called “stolen” to encrypted cloud data.
Cybersecurity experts compared the idea of creating a hidden door to someone leaving their home keys under their doormat – essentially creating a vulnerability that anyone, including bad actors, can exploit.
Digital Rights Group The Electronic Frontier Foundation said that if Apple had respected the request, it would have created a stolen door not only for British users “but for people of the world, whatever their place of citizenship or citizenship that they had “.
Apple told the BBC in a press release that he had “never built a stolen door or master of any of our products, and we will never do it”.
What Google and Android protections do they offer?
Like Apple, Google says it uses standard encryption in a range of its services to protect data when it moves between user devices, services and data centers.
The research giant, owner of Android, has provided other protections for backups of the Android telephone system since 2018.
It uses a mechanism that generates a random safety key on a device, which is encrypted by a password, a model or a user locking screen.
Google says that he cannot see this safety key and that information protected by passing capes is sent safely to high -security fleas in its data centers.
But the same protections do not extend to Google photos or the content stored in Google Drive – which are not encrypted from start to finish.
It also has an advanced protection program for people who wish to security on their behalf.
This is based on the use of Passkeys to check the account holder.
Certain Samsung Galaxy smartphones also have “improved data protection” that costs messages backups, call logs, applications and parameters and more end.
