Well, maybe the reason is Apple is giving their users the benefits of the doubts and also it is not their job to nab pedos? They are legally required to ensure that their servers are not used for storing illegal contents, and they have to show that they are taking steps in ensuring that happens. Otherwise they will land in hot soup for not doing what the law requires of them.
That is a valid point, I guess. However, as you noted, the information should not be on their servers and consequently, there is already language in EULA for this purpose. Apple should simply scan the servers....
This is a back door, combined with technology that reads chats on the phone....Remember, even friendly countries such as Australia, albeit a member of the "5 Eyes", has a law that clearly empowers ministers to compel firms to retrain an existing surveillance system on different images, vastly expanding the scope of Apple’s proposed snooping.
What I write next will upset many: I completely agree child pornography is terrible. However, it it demonstrably worse and impact more people than say traffic accidents and resulting fatalities, about 35,000 - 40,000, and injuries annually? Should the government not be demanding the tech, GPS and other companies modify existing systems to report speeding and erratic driving? And should we the public not be accepting when our iPhone reports excessive speed to the relevant authorities.
If this were to happen, I believe that many more people would be upset as it impacts a larger percentage of the population. There would be a greater outcry of invasion of privacy. Yet, as noble as the fight against CSAM is, most people are untouched by the horror. And this is why I believe many see this as the "thin end of the wedge" for additional tools "to ensure YOUR safety" in the not too distant future.