The U.S. Justice Department is seeking to overturn a ruling protecting Apple from unlocking the iPhone at the center of a New York drug case. The recent ruling from a New York magistrate judge stated that the government can’t compel Apple to unlock an iPhone involved in a criminal investigation, using the All Writs Act.
So the decision must have been wrong, of course!
Making it sound like the 2016 version of a souped-up getaway car, NYPD counter-terrorism chief John Miller described iOS as the perfect tool for “kidnappers, robbers and murderers” in a recent interview — all due to its uncrackable privacy policy.
“You are actually providing aid to [felons] who have actually been recorded on the telephones in Riker’s Island telling their compatriots on the outside, ‘You gotta get iOS 8. It’s a gift from God,’ — and that’s a quote — ‘because the cops can’t crack it,’” he said — referring to Apple’s current privacy standoff with the FBI.
There’s no shortage of possible repercussions to Apple’s current standoff with the FBI, regarding whether or not the company should create a backdoor to help unlock iPhones involved with potential terrorist or criminal cases.
But while Apple (and others) have argued that this represents a damaging blow against privacy, a recently-filed amacus brief in support of Apple by former secure technology company Lavabit has a more direct example of how the FBI’s demands may hurt America: by driving tech companies offshore to avoid having their reputations damaged.
France’s lower house of parliament has passed an amendment which could see Apple charged heavy fines, and even handed out jail time, if it fails to hand over encrypted data as part of government investigations.
The amendment affects both tech and telecoms companies. The punishment could reach up to €350,000 ($385,000) and five years in jail, although a proposed amendment asking the French government to hand out fines of €1 million was rejected.
The FBI is unlikely to give up trying to pry its way into iPhones even if it loses the current standoff with Apple over encryption, says security expert Bruce Schneier.
Schneier, who is one of the leading experts on modern cryptography, says it is “clear that the San Bernardino case was preselected as a legal precedent case” by the bureau — despite the fact that FBI Director James Comey has claimed this is not the case (only to later contradict himself.)
Although most of the attention on Apple’s privacy standoff with the government has so far focused on the United States, the U.S. isn’t the only place where Apple’s fighting with the authorities over iPhone encryption.
In France, politician Yann Galut, a member of the country’s Socialist Party, has submitted an amendment to a bill designed to strengthen the French government’s fight against terror — by arguing that Apple should pay €1 million per smartphone if it does not “promptly” agree to unlock devices when asked to by law enforcement.
Apple filed an appeal late on Tuesday, protesting the government’s order that it create software to help the FBI to hack an iPhone used by one of the terrorists in the mass-shooting of 14 people in San Bernardino.
The appeal was filed just before 11pm PST, and lists formal objections to Judge Sheri Pym’s order — stating that Apple is making the appeal out of what the company calls,”an abundance of caution.”
In a Congressional hearing today that included both Apple’s chief attorney and government officials, FBI head James Comey didn’t win many people over to his side.
The meeting allowed both sides to make their arguments for and against Apple creating a less secure version of the iPhone’s operating system that would allow officials to get by the password lock on a dead terrorist’s phone. And things seemed to go squarely in the company’s favor, although it was not without its caveats.
The husband of a San Bernardino survivor — whose spouse almost lost her life during the mass shooting which prompted Apple’s hacking standoff with the FBI — has said that he supports Apple’s pro-privacy stance.
Salicin Kondoker’s wife was shot three times during the attack, but in a letter to Judge Sheri Pym, Kondoker writes that Apple’s fight represents, “something much bigger than [hacking] one phone.”
Siri loves Ron Paul, and apparently Paul’s feelings toward Apple are mutual.
The former congressman and presidential candidate used his weekly column this week to take on the issue of Apple’s standoff with the FBI — arguing that creating a backdoor for the iPhone would absolutely be a “precedent-setting case,” and stating that, “The government spying on us has not prevented one terrorist attack.”
Apple has argued that its encryption beef with the U.S. government should be heard by Congress, rather than the courts, and it appears that certain members of the House Judiciary Committee agree.
According to a new report, select Republican and Democratic party members of the House Judiciary Committee are considering filing a “friend of the court” brief to support elevating the case up to Congress level — although no final decision has yet been made.
With Apple not yet willing to accept court orders to unlock the iPhone at the center of the San Bernardino shooing case, legal experts are weighing in on what penalties the company (and, conceivably, Tim Cook) may face if the parties involved refuse to do so.
The answer? Anything from some pretty big fines to jail-time for Apple’s CEO.
Legendary investor Warren Buffett says Apple should help the FBI crack the iPhone at the center of the San Bernardino shooting case because “privacy has its limits.”
Speaking to CNBC Monday, Buffett said he’s not siding against Apple — although he kind of is.
If there’s one thing we’ve learned over the last few years, it’s that our communications devices are not secure. Guardlock makes sure that at least you can make a phone call without feeling like the walls have ears. It’s peace of mind you can get a lifetime subscription to for for just $99.
This week on The CultCast: With the FBI-versus-Apple privacy battle heating up, some lawyers say Tim Cook could land in jail; why Siri in the next version of OS X may point to redesigned MacBooks; and, just how much would you pay for a box of Steve Jobs’ old crap? Plus we pitch you our favorite tech and apps in an all-new Faves ‘N Raves!
Color us somewhat unsurprised, but all five remaining GOP presidential candidates are siding with the FBI over Apple in the ongoing disagreement over whether Apple should help hack the iPhone of one of the dead San Bernardino shooters — thereby setting a potential precedent regarding future user security.
Apple has officially asked a judge to dismiss a court order requiring the company to unlock a terrorist’s iPhone at the FBI’s request.
We knew the legal filing was coming, but now we have the actual defenses Apple is using to defend its refusal to create what it calls a “GovtOS” that would let officials potentially bypass the security measures of millions of iPhones. The 65-page document released today details Apple’s history of assistance in the case — and the reasons it believes the original order is both bothersome and possibly illegal.
The FBI’s demand that Apple build a backdoor into a terrorist’s iPhone has done the seemingly impossible by getting Microsoft, Google and Apple all on the same team.
Many of the country’s top tech firms have revealed that they will file friend-of-the court briefs in defense of Apple’s position that no company should be compelled by the government to break its own security and thus put the public safety of millions of users at risk.
The U.S. House Judiciary Committee announced both FBI director James Comey and Apple’s general counsel Bruce Sewell are testifying at a congressional hearing on encryption March 1. The saga is far from over, since both will state their cases on the matter of whether the government should have access to users’ iPhone data.
The congressional hearing ultimately revolves around a single question: how can the FBI efficiently do what’s necessary to combat threats without invading users’ privacy and potentially making iOS a more vulnerable operating system? Right now there are two polar opposite positions.
Apple plans to make future versions of iOS so secure even it can’t hack it, and the company is wasting no time stocking up on talented developers that specialize in encryption.
One of the iPhone-maker’s most recent hires, Frederic Jacobs, was previously a lead developer for Signal, which has earned a name as one of the most secure messaging apps available. It’s so good, it’s become a favorite of former NSA-contractor Edward Snowden who says he uses it everyday.
Apple may not be willing to help hack its iPhones for the FBI, but (contrary to certain spin) it’s in no way supportive of terrorism, either.
To demonstrate this, Apple is one of several tech and media companies which met with the Justice Department yesterday to discuss ways to counter the spread of ISIS messaging on social media platforms.
Apple has reportedly started work on creating new security measures for the iPhone that would make it even harder for governments to break into a locked iPhone using the methods being discussed as part of the current San Bernardino court case in California.
There is no word on exactly how Apple plans to approach the problem, but it said to have been working on a solution prior to the recent court case. One possible solution may relate to a new backup strategy for iCloud authentication, which Apple itself would not be able to decrypt.
Saying that Apple’s refusal to help an FBI investigation puts the company “on the side of terrorists,” Maricopa County, Arizona’s county attorney’s office will no longer issue iPhones for official use.
Prosecutor Bill Montgomery issued the public statement today after privately communicating the new policy to “applicable staff” on Sunday.
In an interview with ABC News tonight, Apple CEO Tim Cook described the code the FBI is asking the company to make to crack San Bernardino shooter Syed Farook’s iPhone as “the software equivalent of cancer.”
Cook sat down in his office with World News Now anchor David Muir to explain why the tech giant is defying the U.S. government. And while he does sympathize with those directly affected by December’s mass shooting, which left 14 people dead and 22 injured, he emphasized that the issues under debate right now are bigger than this one case.
Apple CEO Tim Cook has said that he wishes the company’s current battle with the FBI will be resolved by Congress, rather than in a courtroom, and it appears that he just may get his wish.
Lawmakers in both the House of Representatives and the Senate plan to propose a new commission be created that will specialize on finding the balance between citizens’ right to privacy, while also combating terrorism and other issues of national security.
