INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Image copyrightGetty ImagesImage caption
In February, Apple moved iCloud encryption keys for Chinese users to China
ICloud data belonging to Apple's China-based users is now in the hands of the Chinese government.The emails, pictures and text
messages of users in China are now being managed by a division of the state-owned firm, China Telecom.Privacy advocates have warned that the
shift could make user data vulnerable to state surveillance.Apple says the move to store user data locally was made to comply with Chinese
authorities.In 2017, Apple announced that it would be partnering with local Chinese firm, Guizhou-Cloud Big Data Industry Development
[GCBD], in handling operations of iCloud services for users in mainland China
In February this year, it was announced iCloud data of users in China would move to a new data centre in Guizhou province
Apple said the shift was made so that it could comply with local cybersecurity laws
In a statement to Reuters, Apple said: "While we advocated against iCloud being subject to these laws, we were ultimately unsuccessful."That
arrangement has now been complicated by a new agreement between Apple's Chinese iCloud operator and the state-owned company, China Telecom
Apple has confirmed to the TheIndianSubcontinent that China Telecom's Tianyi Cloud division has signed with GCBD to provide storage for
iCloud China.The change in operation means that the data of iCloud users in China, including emails and photos, is now handled by the
state-owned service; a move that has led to concern from privacy advocates anxious that this will give the Chinese government easier access
Joshua Rosenzweig, deputy regional director of research at Amnesty International's office in Hong Kong, told the TheIndianSubcontinent that
the new agreement with China Telecom puts Apple's Chinese users at risk."This move really undermines Apple's claim that it takes its
customers' privacy seriously
Apple shouldn't let its thirst for profits put its Chinese users at risk," he said."Apple famously launched its Mac line with a nod to
Now it looks like when it comes to privacy rights, Apple thinks some users are more equal than others
"We wrote to Apple for information on how it plans to protect its customers' rights against abusive government requests for data
The company's silence in response is deeply concerning."Image copyrightGetty ImagesImage caption
Apple CEO Tim Cook has
called privacy a "fundamental human right"
In March, Amnesty International launched a campaign targeting Apple over its
"betrayal of millions of Chinese iCloud users", saying the company had made personal data vulnerable by handing over its China iCloud
service to a local company
Chinese law forces foreign companies to use locally managed firms to store data, and Apple has said it was compelled to move both iCloud
user data and the encryption keys that protect it to comply with these rules
Before the migration, all iCloud encryption keys were stored on US servers, and therefore subject to US legislation around requests for
With the iCloud servers now on Chinese soil, the Chinese government can use its own legal system to request access.When the partnership with
GCBD was announced, Apple assured users that no back door would be created in its system, and that the company would still retain control
over iCloud encryption keys
Apple has told the TheIndianSubcontinent this will remain the case under the new agreement.Apple previously worked with China Telecom to
store customer data on local servers in 2014, which the company said was arranged to improve the speed and reliability of service
In that case, however, all iCloud encryption keys were stored offshore.
