Apple Prevails in iCloud Child Abuse Material Case
Synopsis
A US judge dismissed the lawsuit with prejudice, ruling federal law protects Apple from claims related to user content hosted on its platform.
Key Highlights
- A US judge dismissed a class action claim against Apple concerning child abuse material on iCloud.
- Apple got its cover under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, according to one ruling from the court.
- The claims made in the lawsuit sought $32.8 billion and changes to Apple’s iCloud platform
A U.S. judge today dismissed a proposed class-action lawsuit against Apple (AAPL. O) over its failure to prevent the spread of child sexual abuse material via its iCloud data storage platform, arguing that the technology company has wide immunity from such claims under a federal law providing liability protections for online services regarding user content.
A federal judge in San Jose, California on Monday ultimately ruled in favor of Apple, agreeing with the Cupertino based tech giant that they are protected against claims from plaintiffs who says the company did not do enough to prevent images of their childhood sexual abuse being shared and stored via iCloud.
The lawsuit attempted to pin Apple as responsible under the Communications Decency Act of 1996, with Wise saying the claims fell within Section 230, which addresses liability regarding content that users create.
Lawsuit demanded damages of $32.8 billion
The plaintiffs, who go by the pseudonyms Amy and Jessica, sued in 2024 on behalf of a potential class of 2,680 individuals. They claimed that pictures of their childhood sexual abuse had been retained, and disseminated via iCloud, and that Apple did not use existing technology to track down the material even though they knew it was there.
The complaint only requested compensatory damages of more than $32.8 billion and an injunction to force Apple and other companies to alter the way iCloud works. Judge Wise dismissed the case with prejudice, which makes it impossible to refile.
NeuralHash Program Raised in Case
Apple announced it was going to launch a program NeuralHash for detecting child sexual abuse material. Ultimately, the complaint alleges that Apple scrapped its plans for rolling out the system and opted instead to release end-to-end encryption of iCloud data.
Apple has argued it opted for better alternatives to help stop the spread of child sex abuse imagery while preserving users’ safety and privacy.
Plaintiffs’ attorney said they are mulling appeal, looking into other legal claims A similar lawsuit was issued by the West Virginia Attorney General against Apple for distributing child sexual abuse material through its iCloud platform.
Source: Reuters
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