Almost everyone is happy about iOS 8’s recent privacy upgrade, which means that Apple can’t unlock your phone as part of an investigation. Almost everyone, that is, except for the FBI.
Speaking with reporters Thursday, FBI director James Comey described himself as “very concerned” by steps tech companies like Apple are taking to strengthen privacy on mobile devices.
“I am a huge believer in the rule of law, but I am also a believer that no one in this country is beyond the law,” Comey said. “What concerns me about this is companies marketing something expressly to allow people to place themselves above the law.”
As part of its transition to iOS 8, Apple amended its privacy policy to state that:
“On devices running iOS 8, your personal data such as photos, messages (including attachments), email, contacts, call history, iTunes content, notes, and reminders is placed under the protection of your passcode. Unlike our competitors, Apple cannot bypass your passcode and therefore cannot access this data. So it’s not technically feasible for us to respond to government warrants for the extraction of this data from devices in their possession running iOS 8.”
In May this year Apple tweaked its policy so that it would now alert users whenever the NSA requested their data.
In his Thursday interview, Comey said that although he understands the need for privacy, it is also important that governments can access mobile devices in situations such as terror attacks.
“I like and believe very much that we should have to obtain a warrant from an independent judge to be able to take the content of anyone’s closet or their smart phone,” he said. “The notion that someone would market a closet that could never be opened — even if it involves a case involving a child kidnapper and a court order — to me does not make any sense.”
Google has recently announced security measures for Android devices similar to those of iOS 8.
Via: Huffington Post
