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Apple Begins Storing Chinese User Data On Servers In China

Posted by timothy on from the eat-local-and-store-data-there-too dept.

An anonymous reader writes Reuters reported on Friday that Apple "has begun keeping the personal data of some Chinese users on servers in mainland China." Apple has claimed that the move is meant "to improve the speed and reliability of its iCloud service", but given China's track record with censorship and privacy, the explanation rings hollow for some skeptics. Nevertheless, Apple assures its Chinese users that their personal data on China Telecom is encrypted and that the encryption keys will be stored offshore. Only time will tell if Apple will be able to resist Chinese government requests to access its China-based servers.

3 of 92 comments (clear)

  1. What's the problem... by Rick+in+China · · Score: 5, Insightful

    They're storing mainland customer data on mainland servers. I don't see the problem with this - if the Chinese gov't wants data, they have SO many means at their disposal to capture it regardless of whether it's stored on a domestic server, or external. This is a good move, imo, as storing data in any country other than China would mean heavy latency passing through the GFW and having it likely captured elsewhere anyways.

  2. Not just China by Rosco+P.+Coltrane · · Score: 4, Insightful

    [...] but given China's track record with censorship and privacy, the explanation rings hollow for some skeptics.[...]

    Given the United State's track record, I think the skeptics should worry about data collection at home too.

    Why always focus on China when it comes to human rights and privacy issues? Just look at your own navel for a change...

    --
    "A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of" - Ogden Nash
    1. Re:Not just China by Clsid · · Score: 4, Informative

      I have been living in China for quite a bit now, and I actually ask the same thing myself when I read something about China. Even this move by Apple is distorted in the way that the article is presented to always put the Chinese as the evil bad guys. Hell, I don't like the GFW myself, but I have to admit that this move by Apple is something of a trend for every tech company doing business in China. You incur a huge penalty in response times when you have to fetch content from the outside, which is why we go to great lengths in stuff we develop to make sure we are not linking to some google font, some blogspot/facebook link, etc.