Apple Removes All References to Controversial CSAM Scanning Feature From Its Child Safety Webpage [Updated]

Apple has quietly nixed all mentions of CSAM from its Child Safety webpage, suggesting its controversial plan to detect child sexual abuse images on iPhones and iPads may hang in the balance following significant criticism of its methods.

Child Safety Feature yellow
Apple in August announced a planned suite of new child safety features, including scanning users' iCloud Photos libraries for Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), Communication Safety to warn children and their parents when receiving or sending sexually explicit photos, and expanded CSAM guidance in Siri and Search.

Following their announcement, the features were criticized by a wide range of individuals and organizations, including security researchers, the privacy whistleblower Edward Snowden, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), Facebook's former security chief, politicians, policy groups, university researchers, and even some Apple employees.

The majority of criticism was leveled at Apple's planned on-device CSAM detection, which was lambasted by researchers for relying on dangerous technology that bordered on surveillance, and derided for being ineffective at identifying images of child sexual abuse.

Apple initially attempted to dispel some misunderstandings and reassure users by releasing detailed information, sharing FAQs, various new documents, interviews with company executives, and more, in order to allay concerns.

However, despite Apple's efforts, the controversy didn't go away. Apple eventually went ahead with the Communication Safety features rollout for Messages, which went live earlier this week with the release of iOS 15.2, but Apple decided to delay the rollout of CSAM following the torrent of criticism that it clearly hadn't anticipated.

Apple said its decision to delay was "based on feedback from customers, advocacy groups, researchers and others... we have decided to take additional time over the coming months to collect input and make improvements before releasing these critically important child safety features."

The above statement was added to Apple's Child Safety page, but it has now gone, along with all mentions of CSAM, which raises the possibility that Apple could have kicked it into the long grass and abandoned the plan altogether. We've reached out to Apple for comment and will update this article if we hear back.

Update: Apple spokesperson Shane Bauer told The Verge that though the CSAM detection feature is no longer mentioned on its website, plans for CSAM detection have not changed since September, which means CSAM detection is still coming in the future.

"Based on feedback from customers, advocacy groups, researchers, and others, we have decided to take additional time over the coming months to collect input and make improvements before releasing these critically important child safety features," Apple said in September.

Top Rated Comments

Jim Lahey Avatar
23 months ago
If I ever find out this has been surreptitiously added without my knowledge then I will sell every Apple device I own and never buy another. Anyone who doesn’t have an issue with this has no clue of the concept of mission creep. If these systems are allowed to exist then it’s only a matter of time before the Feds batter your door in for having a [insert future dictator here] meme in your iCloud library. The road to hell is paved with good intentions.
Score: 62 Votes (Like | Disagree)
entropys Avatar
23 months ago
Good too much potential for abuse (and I am not saying that ironically).
Score: 46 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DaveFlash Avatar
23 months ago
better, this was bound to fail at the start, you'd only need one bad actor feeding apple's system wrong hashes and everyone is a potential suspect for whatever governmental purpose that bad actor wants to silence, like criticism, dissent, protestors in Hong Kong, LGBT minorities in certain regions you name it. Also, as an EU citizen, I'm glad, as this system Apple proposed, wouldn't have been allowed here anyway because of the strong protections in our GDPR privacy laws.
Score: 31 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DMG35 Avatar
23 months ago
This was a mess from the beginning and pulling it was the only logical thing to do.
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Solomani Avatar
23 months ago
Good. It is only right that Apple should listen to its userbase.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Agit21 Avatar
23 months ago
Im still not going to activate iMessage again or iCloud backup for pictures. Thank you Tim.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iphone se 4 modified flag edges

iPhone SE 4 Details: Action Button, USB-C Port, Face ID, and More

Wednesday September 27, 2023 1:34 pm PDT by
Significant changes are expected to arrive with Apple's fourth-generation iPhone SE, in terms of both design and hardware, MacRumors has learned. The iPhone SE 4, known internally under the codename Ghost, is expected to receive a new design derived almost entirely from the base model iPhone 14. According to our sources, the iPhone SE 4 will use a modified version of the iPhone 14 chassis...
iOS 17

Apple Releases iOS 17.0.2 and iPadOS 17.0.2 for All iPhones and iPads

Tuesday September 26, 2023 12:47 pm PDT by
Apple today released iOS 17.0.2 and iPadOS 17.0.2 updates, with the software coming five days after the releases of iOS 17.0.1 and iPadOS 17.0.1. Today's iOS 17.0.2 and iPadOS 17.0.2 updates arrive as build 21A351 and can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. Note that iOS 17.0.2 was previously made available for iPhone...
iPhone 15 Pro Lineup Feature

Kuo: iPhone 15 Pro Overheating Issues Likely Due to Thermal Compromises, Not 3nm Node

Tuesday September 26, 2023 9:12 am PDT by
Complaints about heat issues with the iPhone 15 Pro models are not related to TSMC's 3-nanometer node that was used for the A17 Pro chip, according to well-respected Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. Kuo says that overheating could be caused by "compromises made in the thermal system design" that allowed Apple to cut down on the weight of the iPhone 15 Pro models. Kuo says that the reduced heat...
iOS 17

Everything New in iOS 17.1 Beta 1

Wednesday September 27, 2023 1:57 pm PDT by
Just a week after releasing iOS 17, Apple has seeded the first beta of iOS 17.1 to developers. iOS 17.1 adds some features that Apple promised were coming to iOS 17 in the future, plus it refines and improves some existing features. This guide covers everything new in the first iOS 17.1 beta. Apple Music Favorites You can favorite songs, albums, playlists, and artists in the iOS 17.1...
macos sonoma 4

Apple Releases macOS Sonoma With New Widget Features, Safari Updates, Screen Sharing Improvements and More

Tuesday September 26, 2023 10:01 am PDT by
Apple today released macOS 14 Sonoma, the newest version of the operating system that runs on the Mac. macOS Sonoma has been in beta testing for several months, and it is compatible with the 2019 and later iMac, the iMac Pro, the 2018 and later Mac mini, the 2018 and later MacBook Pro, the 2019 and later Mac Pro, and the Mac Studio. The ‌macOS Sonoma update can be downloaded for free on...