Like the election, there are clearly sides in the Apple verse Justice Department debate about privacy and security. Apple wants to protect its own security and privacy issues while the Justice Department wants to force Apple to unlock an iPhone to enable entry. As the Justice Department tries to couch it as protecting national security interests in a standalone case, we now learn that this is not just a one off ask.
According to the NY Times, "The Justice Department is demanding Apple’s
help in unlocking at least nine iPhones nationwide in addition to the
phone used by one of the San Bernardino, Calif., attackers." Last week it was one phone, now it is 10, and as Apple suspects, the ask will continue to hack its security protocols on its iPhone on even more cases, not just Federal, but State as well. And once the "master key" is built, many suspect that other countries will also want to have it. This slippery slope continues to slant downward.
Not that Apple hasn't helped the Government in other cases, it is just that this particular ask raises many more issues than it prevents. As citizens, we continually worry that our identity, our bank accounts, our medical and other personal information, is being hacked. It was never as simple as one iPhone, one case, and Apple's arguments continue to resonate to those that wish to have their privacy protected. It is why I stand behind Apple in this standoff with the Justice Department.
