Cybersecurity legend John McAfee has sided with Apple in the company’s fight against the FBI over creating a backdoor to access the San Bernardino shooter’s locked iPhone 5c.
But just because McAfee thinks Apple shouldn’t unlock the smartphone doesn’t mean he thinks he shouldn’t do it.
In an open letter regarding Tim Cook’s decision to deny the FBI request, McAfee has offered up the services of his team of superhero hackers to unlock the iPhone — and he says it will only take them three weeks.
Apple is finally providing a solution for customers whose iPhones are bricked by the disastrous Error 53 issue that disables iPhones that had a home button or cables related to Touch ID replaced by an unauthorized third-party.
The company released iOS 9.2.1 this morning as an iTunes-only update that can restore devices that have been taken out by Error 53. Apple published a new support document detailing what causes Error 53 and how to repair iPhones effected.
An official statement was also released apologizing for Error 53, saying it was intended to only be used in factories to check hardware.
Apple isn’t skimping on processing power when it comes to the iPad Air 3 and iPhone 5se that are expected to be revealed next month.
Even though the new 4-inch iPhone is being aimed as a mid-range smartphone, Apple reportedly plans to include the same A9 processor found in the iPhone 6s, while the iPad Air 3 will pack the A9X processor found in the iPad Pro.
Apple is launching a new strategy to get customers to ditch their old iPhones for a new model by combining aspects of its two upgrade programs to create the “Trade Up With Installments” plan.
The new program lets customers trade in an old iPhone or Android (they’ll even take Windows phones if you can find one). Apple will then apply the value of the old device toward a new iPhone and let you pay off the rest of the purchase price over 24 months.
Internet privacy activist and former NSA contractor Edward Snowden has come out in favor of Tim Cook’s decision to deny a federal court judge’s request that Apple help the FBI hack the San Bernardino terrorist’s iPhone 5c.
Snowden is calling Apple’s battle over security the most important tech case in a decade, and has called out Google for not coming to the public’s side on the issue. In a series of tweets expounding on the issues, Snowden said the FBI’s efforts to force Apple to give them a key bypasses citizen’s ability to defend their rights.
A federal judge has ordered Apple to comply with the FBI’s demands to unlock the San Bernardino terrorist’s iPhone 5c. Apple CEO Tim Cook has boldly and politely refused. However, his reason has nothing to do with whether Apple has the ability to hack the iPhone.
It simply doesn’t want to.
Apple has spent the past few years making its devices more secure by adding Touch ID and a secure element. The iPhone 5c doesn’t have Touch ID, though, so the FBI wants to brute-force unlock it by guessing the terrorist’s PIN. The problem is, iOS will automatically wipe the device after too many unsuccessful attempts — and iOS also delays how often you can guess a passcode. So the FBI created a plan for how Apple can help the bureau get around it.
If Apple had any common sense, they would just succumb to the FBI’s demands and unlock the San Bernardino terrorist iPhone, claims the all-wise and powerful Donald Trump. However, in his bold letter refusing to comply with a court order to create a backdoor to iOS, Apple CEO Tim Cook argues that doing so would set a dangerous precedence and leave customers vulnerable to hackers.
This is the biggest challenge Apple’s ever faced when it comes to iPhone security. The company has made iOS devices impossible for even it to hack, but that could be coming to an end if the federal government has its way.
So, who’s right?
Vote in our poll below and share your thoughts in the comments:
Jony Ive and Tim Cook graced the pages of fashion bible Vogue this week in a brief and slightly odd interview talking about everything from the new spaceship campus destined to open at the end of the year, to the iPhone-maker’s new status as a fashion icon.
“In what we do,” Tim Cook observed, “design is crucial, as it is in fashion.”
Apple’s been steering its ship deeper into the water of the fashion world ever by launching the Apple Watch and hiring a bevy of fashion house talent, and based on Jony Ive’s remarks, it sounds like Apple plans to dive much deeper into wearable tech.
The iPhone 5se could be the pinkest iPhone Apple’s ever made if you believe the rumors, but what if it came the body like an iPhone 6 instead of a 5s?
In a new concept of Apple’s 2016 iPhone lineup, the folks at Curved have put a pink spin on the iPhone 5se that’s expected to be unveiled on March 15th. They also created concepts of the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus that add rumored features like a dual lens camera on the 7 Plus and a simpler frame with fewer antennas and no headphone jack.
Take a closer look:
Apple is allegedly planning to beef up the iPhone 7’s shielding against electromagnetic interference this year with new protections for all of the device’s major chips.
The iPhone 7 may not be able to survive a devastating EMP attack — like the one presidential candidate Ted Cruz has been really worried about lately — but it should lead to better performance, according to a report out of South Korea claiming Apple has already hired StatsChipPac and Amkor to do the shielding.
Apple has set its sights on taking over the smartphone market in India and its planning to bring more than just retail jobs to the country in the process.
The company confirmed today that it is planning to invest $25 million in a new office complex this year in Hyderabad that will bring 4,500 jobs to the area during the construction process.
Hipsters have been using the iPhone to document their meals on Instagram for years now, but the culinary geniuses at Bon Appétit are taking iPhone food photography to unprecedented levels for its March issue.
Bon Appétit sent its top photographers to shoot everything from food festivals to fine-dining dishes for next month’s Culture issue, only instead of lugging around their pro-level DSLRs and wide array of lenses, the photogs were only allowed to use their iPhones.
The end result is a gorgeous 43-page spread that will make your mouth water. The issue hits newsstands this week, but the company has already revealed some of the incredible photos that you won’t believe were shot on iPhone.
Once Apple finally unveils its new iPad and 4-inch iPhone, it won’t take long before Apple fans are able to get their fingers all over the two new iOS devices.
Both the iPhone 5se and iPad Air 3 will be available the same week they are introduced to the public, according to a new report that claims Apple Stores will have the new devices in stock by March 18th, but there won’t be any pre-orders.
The first piece of original programming to come out of Apple may star none other than the company’s own employee: Andre Young, aka, Dr. Dre.
The hip-hop mogul turned Beats co-founder is reportedly starring and executive producing the first-ever scripted TV series bankrolled by Apple, but it’s still unclear how Dre’s production will be distributed.
There’s never been a better time to buy Apple’s gorgeous gold Retina MacBook, thanks to a new deal from authorized retailer B&H that cuts up to $350 off the price tag of the sleek little notebook that debuted last year.
The price cut is the biggest discount we’ve ever seen on the new MacBook. At $999, the baseline MacBook model with a 1.1GHz Intel Core M processor and 256GB of storage is now the same price as the baseline MacBook Air that comes with only 128GB storage.
Apple is expected to updated the Retina MacBook later this year, but with prices this low, the super-light MacBook is incredibly tempting.
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Star Wars and Mario Kart don’t seem to have much in common at first glance, but when you mash the two mega-universes together at hyperspace speeds, the results are more than super.
Dark Pixel created an incredibly fun new video called Star Kart that imagines what it’d be like if Mario and his pals cruised around the Star Wars galaxy in your favorite spaceships, complete with all the banana peels, golden mushrooms, turtle shells and wacky racing the Nintendo game is known for.
Watch Bowser and Baby Bowser try to take down Mario and the gang as they race from Tatooine to Hoth — and then ultimately the Death Star:
The headphone jack will likely get killed when Apple introduces the iPhone 7 this year, but don’t expect Cupertino to toss in a free pair of wireless EarPods with the new device.
Apple will supposedly include a pair of Lightning-connected EarPods with the iPhone 7, according to an investors note from Barclays that reveals Apple hasn’t purchased the rights to use Cirrus’ noise-canceling technology that would be necessary for the headphones.
Only a handful of products Steve Jobs introduced to the world became flops, but three years after he was kicked out of Apple, the tech visionary unveiled his biggest failure ever: the NeXT computer.
Video footage of Jobs’ first major public appearance since he left Apple in 1985 was lost to the world until researchers for Aaron Sorkin’s movie came across two videotapes of the NeXT’s gala unveiling at San Francisco’s Davies Symphony Hall in 1988.
One of Apple Music’s biggest competitors is looking to sellout.
Pandora, the music streaming service with more users than Spotify and Apple Music, has reportedly been meeting with private parties regarding a possible sale of the company after experiencing its slowest amount of growth ever last year.
Apple is supposedly revving up the engines on its electric car project, and it’s waking up the neighbors in the process.
At least one resident who lives near Apple’s top-secret automotive campus in Sunnyvale, California, has filed a complaint with the city for what the person describes as really loud “motor noises” coming from the Apple campus late at night — even though electric cars are mostly silent.
There are many ways iPhone users can unintentionally brick their devices, but YouTuber Zach Straley may have just discovered the quickest way to turn your beautiful iPhone into a worthless slab of metal, glass, and silicone.
Simply set your iPhone’s date to January 1, 1970 and your device will become nothing better than a paperweight. The bug was supposedly found by a Chinese iPhone users who was trying to solve a date issue with iOS 9.3 beta 3. Not even a DFU restore will bring the device back to life once you set the time back to 1970 and reboot.
Straley posted a video of the bug in action. Needless to say, don’t try this at home:
The Apple Watch could soon turn into an automatically adjusting volume control for your iPhone.
In a new patent filed by Apple with the USPTO, the iPhone-maker has found a way to ensure all your iPhone notifications get played at just the right volume level by using ambient audio samples from Apple Watch.
Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent have had enough with the pleasantries. In the final trailer for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, it’s an all out war.
Warner Brothers has given fans their final glimpse of new movie footage before it hits theaters next month. Batman gets the biggest role in the new trailer that shows Superman won’t have an easy fight against Gotham’s Dark Knight. There are also some new shots of Wonder Woman, Alfred, and of course Lex Luther.
Check it out:
The third beta versions of iOS 9.3 and OS X 10.11.4 were made available to developers earlier this week, but it looks like Apple is opening up the new software updates to public testers as well.
Gamers who grew up in the 90’s may not have heard of the Canadian punk rock band PUP, but they will undoubtedly love the crews newest video for the song ‘DVP’ that combines some of the coolest retro games of the era into a lyric video that’s truly amazing.
Directed by Jeremy Schaulin-Rioux who has produced most of PUP’s other videos — which are also incredible — the new vid features everything from Earthworm Jim to Teenager Mutant Ninja Turtles while ratcheting up the angst.
See how many of your favorite games you can spot: