A lawsuit brought by the state of West Virginia against Apple alleging the company’s business practices safeguard child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) will remain in state courts, reportsWest Virginia Public Broadcasting.
In February West Virginia’s attorney general filed a consumer protection lawsuit against Apple, claiming the tech giant has failed to prevent child sexual abuse materials from being stored and shared via iOS devices and iCloud services.
Republican John “JB” McCuskey accuses the tech giant of prioritizing privacy branding and its own business interests over child safety. He claims other big tech companies, including Google, Microsoft, and Dropbox have been more proactive, using systems like PhotoDNA to combat such material.
Apple attempted to move the case into federal court saying that its mandatory reporting to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children “made it a person ‘acting under’ a federal officer.” The federal court rejected that argument and remanded the case to state court, concluding that Apple’s compliance with federal reporting requirements did not provide a basis for federal officer jurisdiction, according to West Virginia Public Broadcasting.
“The ruling ensures that this case will be decided where it belongs—in a West Virginia court applying West Virginia law,” McCuskey said. “At its core, this case is about Apple’s deliberate business and product-design decisions to prioritize profits over the safety of our children. Apple’s failure to deploy available detection technology is not a passive oversight — it is a choice. That is why we stepped up to take on this fight, and we will continue to do everything in our power to hold them accountable.””
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Article provided with permission from AppleWorld.Today
