Apple Reportedly Storing Over 8 Million Terabytes of iCloud Data on Google Servers
Apple has dramatically increased the amount of iCloud user data it stores on Google Cloud, according to The Information.
The report claims Apple now has over eight million terabytes of data stored on Google's servers. As of mid-May, Apple was reportedly on track to spend around $300 million on Google cloud storage services this year, which would represent an increase of roughly 50% from all of 2020. Apple is said to be the largest corporate client for Google Cloud, dwarfing other high-profile customers like Spotify.
Google Cloud staffers have apparently even given Apple an internal code name that hints at its size as a customer: "Bigfoot."
Apple relies on a combination of its own data centers and third-party cloud storage services, such as Google Cloud and Amazon Web Services, to store iCloud user data like photos and messages. Apple does not provide third-party cloud storage providers with the keys to decrypt user data stored on their servers, ensuring a strong level of security.
The report speculates that Apple's increased use of Google Cloud suggests the company's rising cloud storage requirements have outpaced its ability to develop and operate its own data centers needed to handle the resulting data.
Popular Stories
Apple says it will start checking public iCloud links for harmful content in iOS 27.3, iPadOS 27.3, macOS 27.3, and visionOS 27.3.
Images in iCloud Photos and files in iCloud Drive shared using the "Anyone with the link" option will be "made accessible to Apple" for a content check. Apple doesn't define harmful content, but it could mean malware, malicious files, and/or child sexual abuse...
Google Maps has been updated with improved support for the iPhone Duo's displays, so that the app now fills the foldable iPhone's inner and outer screens rather than leaving unused space along the edge.
The change comes with version 26.44.4, which is available on the App Store. Google doesn't mention Duo-specific changes in its release notes, but the updated support is plainly visible....
South Korea has fined Apple 20.8 billion won ($15.5 million) and ordered it to let developers link to external payment options from their apps, The Associated Press reports.
The Korea Media and Communications Commission found that Apple and Google effectively require developers to use their payment systems, violating a 2021 law intended to allow alternatives. Google was fined 42.9 billion...
