Apple has been forced by the United Kingdom to grant officials access to users’ encrypted accounts, according to a Friday Washington Post article.
TakeAway Points:
- Apple was instructed by Britain’s Home Office last month to develop a technical “backdoor” that would allow officials to read encrypted content uploaded to the cloud, according to a Friday Washington Post article.
- This system has long been criticised by governments in the US, UK, and EU, who claim it allows terrorists, criminals, and sex offenders to hide illegal behaviour.
- Pinterest reported fourth-quarter sales of $1.15 billion, ahead of the $1.14 billion that Wall Street was expecting.
Britain orders Apple to give it access to encrypted accounts
Britain’s Home Office, which handles immigration and security, last month issued an order to Apple requiring a technical “backdoor” that would allow officials to view fully encrypted material uploaded to the cloud software, the Post reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
“We do not comment on operational matters, including for example, confirming or denying the existence of any such notices,” said a Home Office spokesperson.
The iPhone maker gives users the ability to store all their photos, messages, documents and more on its encrypted iCloud service—Apple’s iCloud is end-to-end encrypted, meaning only the owner of the material can view it.
Governments in the U.S., UK, and EU have long expressed dissatisfaction with this setup, arguing it enables criminals, terrorists and sex offenders to conceal illicit activity. In the U.K., the Investigatory Powers Act of 2016 empowers the government to compel tech companies to weaken their encryption technologies through so-called “backdoors.”
Tech firms—including Apple—have pushed back on attempts to undermine encryption, saying it would weaken user privacy.
Pinterest shares surge as much as 20%
Pinterest shares surged as much as 20% after the social media company reported fourth-quarter earnings Thursday that beat on revenue.
The company said its fourth-quarter adjusted earnings per share were 56 cents. That figure is not comparable to analysts’ estimates because the company recorded a deferred tax benefit of $1.6 billion in the fourth quarter.
Revenue for Pinterest’s fourth quarter jumped 18% year over year, while net income was $1.85 billion, which included the deferred tax benefit.
The company’s fourth-quarter adjusted EBITDA margin was 41%, which was higher than the 39% Wall Street was projecting.
Pinterest said it expects first-quarter sales to come in between $837 million and $852 million. The midpoint of that range, $844.5 million, topped analysts’ expectations of $833 million.
The company said global monthly active users grew 11% year over year to 553 million in the fourth quarter. That was ahead of Wall Street estimates of 547.4 million. Pinterest’s fourth-quarter global average revenue per user came in at $2.12, higher than analysts’ expectations of $2.09.
Pinterest’s latest global monthly active user numbers represent nearly 3% growth from 537 million brought in during the third quarter.
“Our strategy is paying off,” Pinterest CEO Bill Ready said in a statement. “People are coming to Pinterest more often; the platform has never been more actionable and our lower funnel focus is driving results for users and advertisers.”
Pinterest’s report comes after other social media companies saw their stock prices rise following strong results for the quarter that ended in December.
Snap shares jumped in after-hours trading on Tuesday after the social media company reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter results. Last week, Meta reported fourth-quarter results that beat on the top and bottom lines.
