Re:Hash collision in Apple NeuralHash model
by snowwrestler on Wednesday August 18, 2021 @10:37AM
(#28221554)
I don’t think this is correct.
1) Even if Apple does roll out this system, it’s not a system for scanning files on customer devices. It’s a system for comparing photos being uploaded to iCloud to a single standardized (everyone has the same one) list of hashes.
2) Apple likely has the legal power to refuse to alter that list of hashes, by the same argument they used against the FBI’s request to bypass the unlock code on specific iPhones.
3) Any argument about what Apple will and will not need to do with this system needs to explain how Microsoft Defender (or other AV products) interact with law enforcement, since those are software systems that scan client devices (ALL files, typically) for signature matches.
1) Even if Apple does roll out this system, it’s not a system for scanning files on customer devices. It’s a system for comparing photos being uploaded to iCloud to a single standardized (everyone has the same one) list of hashes.
2) Apple likely has the legal power to refuse to alter that list of hashes, by the same argument they used against the FBI’s request to bypass the unlock code on specific iPhones.
3) Any argument about what Apple will and will not need to do with this system needs to explain how Microsoft Defender (or other AV products) interact with law enforcement, since those are software systems that scan client devices (ALL files, typically) for signature matches.