Fund looks at German firms

Apple says the joint venture does not mean that China has any kind of “back door” into user data and that Apple alone – not its Chinese partner – will control the encryption keys. But Chinese customers will notice some differences from the start: their iCloud accounts will now be co-branded with the name of the local partner, a first for Apple.

And even though Chinese iPhones will retain the security features that can make it all but impossible for anyone, even Apple, to get access to the phone itself, that will not apply to the iCloud accounts.

Any information in the iCloud account could be accessible to Chinese authorities who can present Apple with a legal order.

Apple said it will only respond to valid legal requests in China, but China’s domestic legal process is very different than that in the US. – Reuters NORWAY’S $1 trillion (R11.52trln) sovereign wealth fund, the world’s biggest, wants to invest in German mediumsized private companies if the Norwegian government allows it to do so this year, its head Yngve Slyngstad told German magazine Focus. The Norwegian fund is seeking permission to broaden its investments to include unlisted companies. “There are many successful medium-sized companies in Germany that are not listed. Until now we could not invest in these firms because we did not have permission from the Norwegian government. We hope that will change this year,” Slyngstad said on Saturday. – Reuters