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Only if the file contents are accessible. Why isn't end-to-end encryption utilized for storage of email on Apple's servers, the same way they do for iMessaging?

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I read somewhere that Apple were going to encrypt backups but that would mean if a user lost their key the data would be lost and as such decided that for usability they would keep back ups as is.

Because 99.9999999% of emails are not encrypted before being sent.

True. But I’m not talking about end-to-end between sender and receiver. I’m just talking about using public key encryption to encrypt received contents with one key and decrypt with another. There are a lot of technical challenges - particularly with maintaining compatibility with email clients - but it can be done.

The inability of MTAs to negotiate and utilize any kind of SSL-style encryption when relaying messages is also a gross travesty in the year 2021.

According to Google, 82% of outbound email to other providers, and 93% of inbound from other providers, is encrypted in transit.

https://transparencyreport.google.com/safer-email/overview

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