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19/03/2016

Apple refuses to budge despite threat of handing over source code


Apple has once again refused to comply with the DOJ’s demand. This interesting case could be rather important, pregnant with enough complexities and with no clear right or wrong, it wouldn’t be surprising if it becomes historically important.



In the latest Apple has once again said it would be unable to comply with the FBI’s demand to assist it break open the San Bernardino’s shooter’s iPhone 5c.
 
In the latest filing of its reply in the brief, Cupertino response to the DOJ stated that the government is essentially trying to "rewrite history by portraying the [All Writs] Act as an all-powerful magic wand rather than the limited procedural tool it is."
 
Reiterating its stand that complying with the FBI demand would set a dangerous precedent as the "security and privacy of millions of citizens" will be stake. Furthermore, Apple has argued that the DOJ is misleading the court by stating the case is just about a single iPhone, when the director of the FBI himself admitted otherwise.
 
While testifying before the congress, the FBI director had said, "The broader question we're talking about here goes far beyond phones or far beyond any case."
 
While stating its many reasons as to why it is refusing to submit to the FBI’s demand, Apple also grazed the touchy subject of the DOJ wanting to create a backdoor in its operating system. In fact, the DOJ has thrown in a calculated threat of forcing Apple to hand over the source code and the digital signature if it were to thwart its efforts at compliance to its orders.
 
"The catastrophic security implications of that threat only highlight the government's fundamental misunderstanding or reckless disregard of the technology at issue and the security risks implicated by its suggestion," read a portion of Apple’s filing.
 
With the weight of tech industry giants supporting it, Apple has so far stood its ground, against a menacing goliath.
 
 


Debashish Mukherjee

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