The United Nations is standing behind Apple in the company’s fight against the FBI over whether the federal government can compel the iPhone-maker to create a backdoor into iOS.
In a letter written in support of Apple’s case, U.N. Special Rapporteur David Kaye says that if the feds are successful, it would infringe on citizens’ right to freedom of expression.
Fiat CEO and self-proclaimed “Apple freak” Sergio Marchionne, is ready to embrace a future where Apple designs cars, but he wants his company to make it.
Marchionne made an appearance at the Geneva auto show today and said that if Apple’s really thinking about making a car on its own, they must have some type of illness.
Apple General Counsel Bruce Sewell suffered an iPad disaster during his appearance before the House Judiciary Committee today, and it couldn’t have happened at a worse moment.
As Sewell read his introductory statement from his iPad Pro, the Apple lawyer’s tablet appeared to crash or become unusable, forcing him to resort to his backup plan: a three-ring binder with good old paper printouts.
You can relive the incident in the video below:
Apple’s general counsel Bruce Sewell is set to appear before the House Judiciary Committee tomorrow, when he’ll go toe-to-toe with FBI Director James Comey over whether the bureau should be allowed to force Apple to create a backdoor into iOS.
Tim Cook already explained Apple’s argument against the FBI’s orders, but today the company revealed what will be Sewell’s opening remarks before Congress unloads a barrage of questions — and he’s got some pretty big questions of his own for lawmakers to consider.
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.
Apple’s been getting a lot of flack for its refusal to create a “GovtOS” from the FBI and Department of Justice. Tim Cook and company have also garnered plenty of support for their forceful stance from other tech companies as well as the rank and file Apple consumer.
Check out this week’s Cult of Mac Magazine to figure out why Apple refuses to create GovtOS, how to get its latest and greatest software, find the best iPhone and iPad password managers around, check out a virtual tour of Tim Cook’s office, and see how the beloved iPod shuffle has been reborn for the age of Spotify.
Here are the week’s top stories.
The company’s privacy battle with the FBI was the main focus at the Apple shareholder meeting today.
CEO Tim Cook reiterated the company’s intention to fight a court order that compels engineers to create software capable of bypassing the iPhone’s passcode security system. Yesterday, Apple filed its official objection to the ruling.
“We are a staunch advocate of privacy,” Cook told shareholders. “Being hard doesn’t scare us.”
Ted Olson, the legendary lawyer hired by Apple to represent it in the company’s battle against the FBI, warned that the government’s demand to unlock the San Bernardino terrorist’s iPhone will have wide ranging implications, and could possibly create a police state.
In an interview this morning, Olson said that if the FBI wins it would create an avalanche of requests from both federal and state courts to unlock iPhones in other cases that prosecutors believe may possibly contain evidence that could be used against the owner.
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!
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.
We don’t know if Apple head Tim Cook’s office got a good going-over before ABC News stopped by last night, but we like to think that it’s always that tidy.
The CEO appeared on World News Tonight to discuss privacy and the company’s ongoing conflict with the FBI, but it was significant for another reason. And both Cook and anchor David Muir couldn’t help but point it out.
“Thanks for having us in your office,” Muir said. “I don’t think we’ve ever done an interview in your office before.”
“I’m not sure I’ve ever done an interview in the office,” Cook replied.
So what does the head of Apple keep handy when he’s hard at work? A lot of cool stuff, actually.
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.
If you can’t wait to see Apple CEO Tim Cook’s talk with ABC News anchor David Muir in a few hours, the network has released a couple of interesting previews ahead of the airing.
In them, Cook addresses both the difficulty of the company’s refusal to the FBI’s demands to unlock a terrorist’s phone and his less-than-satisfactory dealings with the Obama administration and the Justice Department.
Check out the clips below.
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.
Tim Cook is continuing his PR crusade against the FBI this week, only instead of publishing another open letter about Apple’s pro-privacy stance, the CEO will sit down for an interview with David Muir tonight on ABC’s World News Tonight.
Apple has added Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to its growing list of elite tech allies that support that company’s fight against the FBI’s demands to create a back door on iOS to unlock the San Bernardino shooter’s iPhone.
During an appearance today at the the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Zuckerberg said that adding backdoor access to devices is neither effective nor the right thing to do.
The FBI claims there’s absolutely no other way for it to access San Bernardino terrorist Syed Rizwan Farook’s iPhone 5c expect other having Apple create a backdoor. But according to Edward Snowden there’s at least one other option: acid and lasers.
The former NSA contractor and privacy activist appeared in a virtual talk at Johns Hopkins University and pointed out that even though FBI insists forcing Apple to hack the iPhone is the only way forward, that’s simply not true.
Carol Adams’ son, Robert Adams, was among the 14 people killed by Syed Rizwan Farook and his wife on December 2 in San Bernardino, but she doesn’t think the FBI should force Apple to hack the terrorist’s iPhone.
Adams said she stands by Apple’s decision to fight the FBI’s demands to weaken the iPhone’s security in order to access information on Farook’s locked iPhone, explaining that the constitutional right to privacy “is what makes America great to begin with.”
Tim Cook doubled down on his privacy position this morning, refusing to give in to the FBI’s demands to create an iOS backdoor so the bureau can unlock the San Bernardino shooter’s iPhone.
In an email to employees with the subject line “Thank you for your support,” the Apple CEO says the company’s battle is about much more than a single iPhone or single investigation.
Tim Cook sent out an email to all Apple employees this morning, thanking them for their support and outlining the reasons why the FBI’s court order needs to be dropped.
“This case is about much more than a single phone or a single investigation, so when we received the government’s order we knew we had to speak out,” Cook wrote. “At stake is the data security of hundreds of millions of law-abiding people, and setting a dangerous precedent that threatens everyone’s civil liberties.”
Donald Trump has threaten to permanently switch to Samsung if Apple doesn’t give in to the federal government’s demands, and he’s calling on all his followers to do the same.
At a rally in South Carolina this morning the US presidential candidate says that citizens should boycott Apple products until the company hands over the PIN to one of the San Bernardino terrorist’s iPhone 5c. Trump neglected to mention though that nearly all his tweets come from an iPhone.
Apple’s fight against the FBI continues to dominate headlines, with the company standing firm to protect its beliefs and the privacy of its users. But should it really be doing more to help law enforcement agencies?
No one who uses Apple products wants it to compromise the security of iOS by creating dangerous backdoors, but should it be working to find a safer solution that would provide the FBI with information when it’s needed?
Join us in this week’s Friday Night Fight between Cult of Android and Cult of Mac as we battle it out over this hot topic — and be sure to weigh in at the end with your opinion!