Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeny says Apple's new CSAM scanning tech is "government spyware"

The CSAM scanning system will verify image hashes on device and compare them to a library of known offenders

Epic Games CEO took to Twitter after the announcement of Apple's new CSAM (Child Sexual Abuse Material) tech and called it "government spyware" that the iPhone maker is installing on everyone's phone under "presumption of guilt."

I've tried hard to see this from Apple's point of view. But inescapably, this is government spyware installed by Apple based on a presumption of guilt. Though Apple wrote the code, its function is to scan personal data and report it to government.https://t.co/OrkfOSjvS1

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— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) August 7, 2021

The new technology in question is Apple's CSAM scanning system that will scan photo hashes on a user's iPhone before the images are uploaded to iCloud.

The mathematical hashes are generated on-device and then compared against a library of known hashes provided by NCMEC and other child safety organisations.

Sweeny's comments follow a large backlash by security researchers against Apple's new scanning system.

Notably, WhatsApp boss Will Cathcart also chimed in saying that while its intentions were noble, Apple was taking the "wrong approach" to fight the problem.

I read the information Apple put out yesterday and I'm concerned. I think this is the wrong approach and a setback for people's privacy all over the world.

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People have asked if we'll adopt this system for WhatsApp. The answer is no. — Will Cathcart (@wcathcart) August 6, 2021