We have all seen memes on social media about the ‘FBI Agent’. Well it is partially true since government agencies like FBI can get access to user data under specific circumstances, even though it might be harder than most people think. So when Apple proposed the idea of encrypting user data so that even the company itself could no longer have access to it, FBI freaked out.
Apple has been trying to introduce end to end encryption on user data in iCloud’s servers. If implemented, Apple would lose the ‘key’ to user’s data and would not be able to provide user data to law enforcement agencies in a readable form. However, according to a Reuters report, FBI complained that a step like this would harm future investigations. The agency expected that people of ill intent could benefit from Apple’s policy, knowing that no one would be able to access their data.
Apple is trying to bring the best performance for its user, and privacy is a big part of the iPhone package. However, the company has decided to take the government’s side on this matter. While there has been no official chatter from the company, an employee said,”Legal killed it, for reasons you can imagine.” He also said “They decided that they were not going to poke the bear anymore.” His statement stands to reason since Apple had been under heavy fire for trying to implement this idea.
U.S. Attorney General William Barr publicly called on Apple to unlock two iPhones used by a Saudi Air Force officer who shot dead three Americans at a Pensacola, Florida naval base last month. After being criticised for not providing “substantive assistance”, Apple did turn over the shooters data. US president Donald Trump also accused Apple of refusing to unlock phones used by “killers, drug dealers and other violent criminal elements.”
On being asked about FBI’s stance on the mattr, two officials said,“It’s because Apple was convinced. Outside of that public spat over San Bernardino, Apple gets along with the federal government.”
While FBI’s involvement seems like the obvious reason for Apple’s actions, another reason could be that the company was worried that more and more users would have found themselves locked out of their own data.
