by In another twist in the fall out for Apple’s refusal to help the FBI with regards to the San Bernardino case, County Attorney Bill Montgomery stated “Apple on the side of terrorists” in a memo titled “County Attorney’s Office to Discontinue Providing Apple iPhones to Employees”
However what Bill is forgetting that Apple is helping and have helped the FBI in this case.
Ariz. Attorney’s Office has announced that it will not allow workers to choose Apple’s handsets as upgrades or replacements. As Apple is steadfastly refusing to put in a back door to gain access to the iPhone used in that tragic shooting.
Apple’s refusal to cooperate with a legitimate law enforcement investigation to unlock a phone used by terrorists puts Apple on the side of terrorists instead of on the side of public safety,”
in a prepared statement from C ounty Attorney Bill Montgomery
“Positioning their refusal to cooperate as having anything to do with privacy interests is a corporate PR stunt and ignores the 4th Amendment protections afforded by our Constitution.”
Again just to re iterate Apple have already handed all over all information possible within the limitations of not breaching the devices security.
Montgomery added that prosecutors have regularly secured warrants to unlock encrypted smartphones, “including iPhones sold prior to the release of the iPhone 7.” It’s not immediately clear why the office chose to refer to an as yet-unannounced handset.
Evidence obtained this way has allegedly proven “critical” in cases involving murder, drug trafficking, and other crimes. He suggested that Apple is concerned about “the potential for unauthorized access to an encryption key,” and that if so, the problem should be dealt with in that context.
The real impact of the Maricopa County iPhone ban will have little impact on sales since theAttorney’s Office says that it has 564 smartphones in all, of which 366 are iPhones.
Montgomery concluded by saying that he can’t do business with a company that interferes with an investigation into a terrorist attack.
Thats a bit like taking a stance against not purchasing a suite that’s made in the far east by slave labor, purchasing fuel from those profiteering from killing the planet. Let’s not let facts get in the way.
Like that no one actually knows if iPhones are being used for terrorist purposes at all. Remove the security of iMessage and it won’t take long for another security protocol to come along. PGP has been around for ages. To give you an idea if you had a special chip to try to crack PGP privacy it would 10,000,000,000,000 years to try all the possible 128 bit keys
“If Apple wants to be the official smartphone of terrorists and criminals, there will be a consequence,” he said.
One last thought if this does go through and Apple is forced to comply after an appeal of the legal process what happens after? Already the Justice Department Wants Apple To Crack 12 Other iPhones.
If you care to put on your Tin foil hats all of this comes right on the back of the failed SOPA bill and with American Elections around the corner, Apple could be in the middle battling politicians.
Sources maricopacountyattorney.org
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