{"id":28968,"date":"2020-05-19T15:43:06","date_gmt":"2020-05-19T19:43:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/?p=28968"},"modified":"2024-11-08T15:29:21","modified_gmt":"2024-11-08T20:29:21","slug":"fbi-unlocks-pensacola-phone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/2020\/05\/19\/fbi-unlocks-pensacola-phone\/","title":{"rendered":"FBI Unlocks Pensacola Phone"},"content":{"rendered":"

Joe Rossignol<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\n

FBI officials have somehow managed to unlock at least one of two passcode-protected iPhones owned by Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani, the perpetrator of a mass shooting at a Naval Air Station in Florida last December, according to CNN<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n

Apple provided the FBI with iCloud data belonging to Alshamrani, but it refused to assist investigators with gaining access to the iPhones.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n

Malcolm Owen<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\n

Though the unlock method wasn’t revealed, the fact that the FBI has been able to gain access to evidence would usually be thought to slightly reduce the pressure applied by the US government and law enforcement agencies upon Apple to provide more assistance beyond what is already offered by the iPhone maker. To US Attorney General William Barr, the press conference<\/a> was an opportunity to try and increase that pressure.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n

Apple<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Apple responded to the FBI’s first requests for information just hours after the attack on December 6, 2019 and continued to support law enforcement during their investigation. We provided every piece of information available to us, including iCloud backups, account information and transactional data for multiple accounts, and we lent continuous and ongoing technical and investigative support to FBI offices in Jacksonville, Pensacola and New York over the months since.<\/p>\n

[…]<\/p>\n

It is because we take our responsibility to national security so seriously that we do not believe in the creation of a backdoor — one which will make every device vulnerable to bad actors who threaten our national security and the data security of our customers. There is no such thing as a backdoor just for the good guys, and the American people do not have to choose between weakening encryption and effective investigations.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n

I’m trying to figure out what the last clause means. It seems like Apple is saying that it’s good<\/em> that there was a security flaw that the FBI was able to exploit. This seems to let everyone have their cake and eat it, too. We get strong encryption, and the FBI gets the information it wants. But, if Apple ever fixes all the flaws, then there will be a hard choice between weakening encryption for all and impeding investigations. And, in the meantime, the strong encryption carries a huge asterisk because the government seems to be able to get into every high-profile phone, and there are tools for sale that let others do so as well.<\/p>\n\n

Previously:<\/p>\n