New York (AFP)

Apple announced on Friday that it would delay the implementation of its controversial new child pornography protection tools, accused by some of undermining the confidentiality of its devices and services.

The Silicon Valley giant unveiled in early August new features designed to better identify images of a sexual nature involving children, on its iCloud server and on iMessage messaging for children's accounts linked to a family subscription.

The group, known to have so far stood up to anyone who tried to bypass its encryption system to gain access to private messages, assured that these new algorithms did not make the system less secure or confidential.

It has made the protection of its users' data a major selling point in recent years.

But encryption and privacy experts fear that these kinds of tools could be used for other purposes and open a door to surveillance or censorship.

An open letter against these technologies has been signed by various NGOs and more than 7,700 people, including former CIA computer scientist and whistleblower Edward Snowden.

The Cupertino company has tried to defend its new technologies on several occasions.

But in the face of feedback from clients, advocacy groups or researchers, she decided "to take extra time over the next few months to gather feedback and make improvements before releasing these important child protection features to the public. ".

- New concession -

Apple had initially announced that it wanted to install its new tools during the next updates of the operating systems on the iPhone, iPad, iWatch and iMac in the United States.

By postponing this moment, the apple brand seems to be making another concession to its critics as it comes under attack on several fronts and finds itself under pressure from regulators and courts in several countries.

The group notably announced last week that it would allow publishers of mobile applications to offer their customers payment methods outside the App Store, a radical change for the Cupertino, California company.

On Wednesday, he let go of the ballast again by indicating that he would let certain publishers include, in their application, a link to their site, in order to be able to bypass his payment system, which generally charges them 15% or 30% commission.

One of the tools developed by Apple is supposed to compare the photos uploaded to its iCloud server with those stored in a file managed by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) without having direct access to the image.

But encryption and privacy experts fear it will be used for other purposes.

Another tool developed by Apple technicians can scan photos received or sent by minors via iMessage messaging.

But being able to intervene, in any way, on iMessage messaging calls into question the fact that content is supposed to be end-to-end encrypted, experts fear.

Matthew Green, who teaches cryptography at Johns Hopkins University, welcomed Apple's decision to engage in dialogue with the general public.

With these new tools, "it's not just the addition of a fancy new touch bar; it's a compromise on privacy that affects 1 billion users," he notes on Twitter.

For Andy Burrows, head of online safety for children at the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, however, it is an "incredibly disappointing" decision.

"Apple had taken a proportionate approach that sought to balance user security and privacy, and (the group) should have stood firm in the face of criticism," he regretted.

© 2021 AFP