Off Topic Apple refuse to help the FBI with terrorist case

Criminals - Get yourself an iphone

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Apple will contest a court order to help FBI investigators access data on the phone belonging to San Bernardino gunman Syed Rizwan Farook.

The company had been ordered to help the FBI circumvent security software on Farook's iPhone, which the FBI said contained crucial information.

In a statement, Apple chief executive Tim Cook said: "The United States government has demanded that Apple take an unprecedented step which threatens the security of our customers."

"We oppose this order, which has implications far beyond the legal case at hand."

Since September 2014, data on the latest Apple devices - such as text messages and photographs - have been encrypted by default.

If a device is locked, the user's passcode is required to access the data. Entering an incorrect code 10 times will automatically erase the phone's data, if this option has been enabled.

Apple says even its own staff cannot access the data - a move the company made following the Edward Snowden revelations into government surveillance.

The FBI has asked Apple to do two things.

Firstly, it wants the company to alter Farook's iPhone so that investigators can make unlimited attempts at the passcode without the risk of erasing the data.

Secondly, it wants Apple to help implement a way to rapidly try different passcode combinations, to save tapping in each one manually.

The FBI wants to use what is known as a "brute force" attack, trying out every combination until stumbling across the correct one and unlocking the phone.

Farook is understood to have used a four-digit passcode which means there are 10,000 possible combinations.

 

Triple encrypted android black phone is what ya want, for the more discerning terrorist.

 

It's a blag saying that the police can get into any phone. They couldn't even get into my blackberry about 5 years ago...

 

Im sure if they needed to and you was a suspect in a serious case they'd have no bother getting into your phone tbh.

there are ways to protect your phone with various vault apps and such.

 

Apple are between a rock and a hard place here.

Refuse to unlock it and their brand will be accused of being terrorist sympathisers.

Develop a way to get round the lock and they'll be trusting the FBI not to abuse the program...

 

This thread is about terrorism and they can't get into a terrorist phone. That kind of nullifies your argument, mate.

 

Phone racist. Reported

 

It's quite embarrassing that the FBI are publicly begging apple to tell them the 4 digit code to a phone so they can have a read of some texts.

I wonder if they've considered chopping the ****ing owner's hand off and seeing if he had set up fingerprint ID.

 

It's also possible that the NSA can perfectly easily decrypt the phone and already have, but they want Apple to publicly refuse to help decrypt it so that terrorists continue to believe that using an iPhone is safe for them, when it isn't.

And they've already tried fingerprints, it's apparently locked with a PIN code.

 

If Bletchley Park could decode the German Enigma machines during WW2 using by today's technology standards two cans on a bit of string and a lucky dip bag (and no I'm not belittling their tremendous achievement during the,war) then surely the Yanks with all their resources can sort out a four number code without having to go cap in hand to Apple.
If Apple refuse then their CEO wants arresting for obstruction and the company fining trillions of dollars, bell ends.

 

The program is written by apple and designed to 'lock out' after numerous attempts at cracking the code. After a certain number of failed attempts the phone will wipe all data and it may become a task to far to extract the data from the phone at that point.

The fact is, the programs designed to unlock this type of digital combination lock, could do it in under 4 minutes if it wasn't for the fail safe feature that apple have on it.

The problem you have with intelligence agencies unlocking the phone, is that this is real life not Hollywood. Apple will have the best encryption guys in the business, they're the biggest tech firm in the world, NSA would pay these guys pittance in comparison. There are probably groups who could unlock it but you'd be hard pushed to find anybody who'd want to help the US gov't.

 

They have every right to refuse, what's to say that the FBI don't just want carte blanche on entering any apple device on the planet?

The simple answer is to hand the phone to apple, let them unlock it and give it back to the FBI to run forensics, but I'd bet my last quid the FBI won't run with that option.

 

Disagree. I respect the police, the armed forces and the various organisations which exist to protect the public in this country and others but pretty much everyone agrees a line has to be drawn somewhere (unless you think any government official should be able to just come into your house whenever they want and start tearing through the place with no cause). The only question is where you draw the line, that isn't a "right or wrong" situation its a matter of opinion.

If they are trying to prove someone is guilty of something then this sounds like a fishing expedition. If they are trying to find out details of an event then and they already have proof he's guilty then its unfortunate but I hope they have other ways of extracting data from other sources as once the green light is given to this sort of thing it is ripe for abuse.

 

Can't them ex News of the World chaps get the information out for them ?

 

My understanding is that if Apple develop this "hack" then it essentially undoes all their privacy and encryption work for the last god-knows-how-many years. Any would-be hacker would be able to access anyone's iPhone (including government officials) and steal any information they wanted.

In my opinion, Apple are correct. It is not worth compromising the security of every single iPhone in existence just to have a look at one terrorist's text messages. You have to balance risk vs. reward, what are they even expecting to learn? The details of his terror plot? Well, it's already happened so a bit late. It's not like this one random mentalist in America is gonna have all of ISIS' plans for world domination on his ****ing phone ffs

 

Every book I have read or telly programme I have watched shows that the FBI are the sharpest organisation in the world with every resource available to solve the case.

I am shattered by this.

 

I don't see the point in watching TV crime shows now myself

 

In the best traditions of conspiracy theories I reckon the FBI easily hacked into the phone using a Disney app and got all the info they needed before going for a false court order to cover Apple's embarrassment. Apple then make their big announcement that they will resist in the best traditions of the first amendment (right to privacy?) and their shares value will shoot up. Big tussle in courts before Donald Trump mediates a successful conclusion and Apple say Trump is the man to run the world and everybody lives happy ever after.

Jesus I hate the football breaks.

 

Bit of a low blow by the FBI trying to make Apple look like terrorist sympathisers if they don't do what they're told.

 

It's not really a direct allegation by the FBI, it's more like what the public perception could be.

I'm sure the Android dorks (the people who spend their lives trolling internet boards looking for anybody who says anything positive about apple) will love this.