Apple doesn't do this. But other service providers do (Dropbox, Google, etc).
Other service providers can scan for CSAM from the cloud, but Apple cannot. So Apple might be one of the largest CSAM hosts in the world, due to this 'feature'.
> Other service providers can scan for CSAM from the cloud
I thought the topic was on-device scanning? The great-grandparent claim seemed to be that Apple had to choose between automatically uploading photos encrypted and not scanning them, vs. automatically uploading photos unencrypted and scanning them. The option for "just don't upload stuff at all, and don't scan it either" was conspicuously absent from the list of choices.
Why, do other phone manufacturers do this auto-upload-and-scan without asking?
I think FabHK is saying that Apple planned to offer iCloud users the choice of unencrypted storage with server-side scanning, or encrypted storage with client-side scanning. It was only meant to be for things uploaded to iCloud, but deploying such technologies for any reason creates a risk of expansion.
Apple itself has other options, of course. It could offer encrypted or unencrypted storage without any kind of scanning, but has made the choice that it wants to actively check for CSAM in media stored on its servers.
Other service providers can scan for CSAM from the cloud, but Apple cannot. So Apple might be one of the largest CSAM hosts in the world, due to this 'feature'.