Apple reportedly backed off encrypting iCloud data after pressure from the FBI

A new report suggests that Apple previously dropped a large-scale user encryption plan due to pressure from the FBI.

The news comes as Apple is mired in a spat with law enforcement over access to iPhones that belonged to the suspect in the December 2019 shooting at a U.S. Naval base in Pensacola, Florida. 

According to the report from Reuters, Apple alerted the FBI a few years ago that the company "planned to offer users end-to-end encryption when storing their phone data on iCloud." That meant that Apple would no longer be able to access a user's encrypted backup data and turn it over to law enforcement. Read more...