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A comment on Apple reportedly dropped plan for encrypting backups after FBI complained (2020). Parent comment

Re:Apple reportedly dropped plan for encrypting backups afte... by rootusrootus on Thursday January 14, 2021 @11:51AM (#25778651)
The problem with this analogy is that it is likely that something like 99% of shoe buyers can tie their own laces just fine, practically in their sleep. That ratio would be inverted when you consider how many users can successfully keep track of their own encryption keys.

Regular users just care that they don't lose their data. Offer them the option to keep it 100% secure from prying eyes at the risk of losing access to it permanently if they misplace the password, and 99% will tell you to pound sand.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Apple reportedly dropped plan for encrypting backups afte... by BoorishBears on Thursday January 14, 2021 @12:00PM (#25778816)
If anything their analogy shows why that is in fact the default.

Most people can tie their shoelaces, so may stores don't even bother carrying velcro shoes.

Likewise if the situation was inverted, hardly anyone would sell shoes with shoelaces.

When there's finite resources for businesses the needs of the many overcome the needs of the few

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Re:Apple reportedly dropped plan for encrypting backups afte... by ghaff on Thursday January 14, 2021 @01:20PM (#25779983)
And consider some of the scenarios where an iCloud backup is needed which include some sort of fire, flood, etc. So now they need to be sure that their key is stored somewhere safely online where they can get at it.

>99% will tell you to pound sand

Or they'll select it anyway because they don't really understand what they're doing notwithstanding big, scary warnings. A lot of tech people want everything to be configurable but that often is just not a good idea.

[ Parent | on HN ]