The FBI may have lost its opportunity to force Apple to help it break into the phones of suspected terrorists and other criminals.
A federal judge ruled Monday that the U.S. Justice Department cannot use a 227-year-old law to compel Apple to provide the FBI with access to locked iPhone data, dealing a blow to the government in its battle to gain access to one of the San Bernardino terrorist’s locked smart phone.
The ruling, by U.S. Magistrate Judge James Orenstein, applied narrowly to one Brooklyn drug case, but it gives support to the company’s position in its fight against a California judge’s order that it create specialized software to help the FBI hack into iPhones.
Orenstein belittled some government arguments, saying attorneys were stretching an old law “to produce impermissibly absurd results.”
He rejected government claims Apple was only concerned with public relations. He said he found no limit on how far the government would go to require a person or company to violate the most deeply-rooted values.
And he said claims that Apple must assist the government because it reaped the benefits of being an American company “reflects poorly on a government that exists in part to safeguard the freedom of its citizens.”
Both cases hinge partly on whether a law written long before the computer age, the 1789 All Writs Act, could be used to compel Apple to cooperate with efforts to retrieve data from encrypted phones.
“Ultimately, the question to be answered in this matter, and in others like it across the country, is not whether the government should be able to force Apple to help it unlock a specific device; it is instead whether the All Writs Act resolves that issue and many others like it yet to come,” Orenstein wrote. “I conclude that it does not.”
Apple’s opposition to the government’s tactics has evoked a national debate over digital privacy rights and national security. On Thursday, the Cupertino, California-based company formally objected to the California order, accusing the federal government of seeking “dangerous power” through the courts and of trampling on the company’s constitutional rights.
The separate California case involves an iPhone 5C owned by San Bernardino County and used by terrorist Syed Farook. He and his wife Tashfeen Malik killed 14 people during a Dec. 2 attack that was at least partly inspired by the Islamic State group. The couple died later in a gun battle with police.
Orenstein, ruling with an eye to the California case, referenced it multiple times in a 50-page ruling and noted that the government request there was far more “intrusive.”
The New York case features a government request far less onerous for Apple and its cellphone technology; the extraction technique exists for that older operating system and it’s been used before some 70 times before to assist investigators.
Since late 2014, that physical extraction technique hasn’t existed on newer iPhones. In California, U.S. Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym ordered investigators to create specialized software to help the FBI bypass security protocols on the encrypted phone so investigators can test random passcode combinations in rapid sequence to access its data.
The court ruling comes one day before a Tuesday congressional hearing that will include testimony from FBI Director James Comey and Apple General Counsel Bruce Sewell on encryption and “balancing Americans’ security and privacy.”
Orenstein said he was offering no opinion on whether in the instance of this case or others, “the government’s legitimate interest in ensuring that no door is too strong to resist lawful entry should prevail against the equally legitimate societal interests arrayed against it here.”
He noted Congress has not adopted legislation that would achieve the result sought by the government and said it must be discussed by “legislators who are equipped to consider the technological and cultural realities of a world their predecessors could not begin to conceive.”
Apple has declined to cooperate in a dozen more instances in four states involving government requests to aid criminal probes by retrieving data from individual iPhones.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
I am reminded of an old saying: “Poor planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part.”
STOP calling this phone “the terrorist’s phone”. It is a government phone!
The phone was accessible by its owner – San Bernardino, until they gave up that access. Government has no right to force a company to break its product.
The San Bernandino government is lucky that it hasn’t been sued to yet for failure to monitor and supervise the use of their equipment.
THE F B I, NEEDS TO SIT DOWN, SHUT UP , AND SUCK ITR UP. IT IS UNCONSTITUIONAL , BECAUSWE IT IS INVADING THE PRIVACY OF EVERY CITIZEN THAT OWNS AN I PHONE. THE GOVERNMENT CAN NOT,/ SHOULD NOT BE TRUSTED TO ONLY USE THISINFORMATIONON ONE PHONE. COME ON, GET OFF IT. FBI, IS NOT GRANTED SPECIAL PRIVLEDGES UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE.
The FBI is not one to be trusted. There a big crook than the drug Lords.
AMEN! I have an iPhone too and I don’t want my security breached either. If Apple would glean the information from that one phone and hand over to gov just the information from than phone it would be one thing. Any key the gov has they will use.
The phone that was used by the terrorist couple was taken into custody by the San Bernardino police. Since then the FBI took custody of it and tried to “break in”. That was the FBI’s first mistake. Some FBI employee assumed he could hack into the phone screwed up because he expired the “password access attempts” counter. The FBI doesn’t contact Apple immediately upon getting the phone but only after it or the San Bernardino police department already fiddled with it. Big mistake. According to a report an Apple employee told the FBI that the phone worked exactly as it was designed to work. Upon failing to access with the proper password x number of times the information stored on the phone but not updated to the “cloud” is lost. This is part of the design. Supposedly, someone was able to determine that the terrorist did not update the cloud file for quite a few days so the information the FBI wants is no longer available on the phone. Even an Apple engineers creation of some backdoor software cannot retrieve data that has been destructively erased. The point the government is making that Apple can create a “one time” key is ridiculous. The operating system, IOS, resides on the phone. Because of that a “one time access key” or more accurately to ignore the password access fail count would mean that that operating system needs to be loaded to the phone. Once it is on that phone, assuming it is possible to load it to a locked phone, that modified operating system is then in the hands of someone other than Apple, namely the FBI; not historically known for it’s honesty and integrity. If the FBI had a brain they would turned the device over to Apple to see if it is possible to retrieve anything. Apple has in the past supplied the government with requested data when Apple is in complete control of the process. What the FBI/government is requesting now is totally different. And Apple is absolutely correct in assuming the government will have a physical copy of the company’s copywriten business secrets. Nothing in the Constitution gives the government that right or authority. Hold your ground Tim !! After the terrorists were killed it was learned that the man and woman were both on FBI and HSI watch lists. So the government had information on them and did nothing with it. Obviously, they put people o their lists and never bother to follow up on anything until something bad takes place. Where is the oversight and constant vigilance we are told the government practices?
If the password accepts counter has already gone over, then the whole court battle is moot. I haven’t heard anything that the FBI was stupid enough to try to brute force the phone knowing the counter was active.
The failure is that a government entity failed to properly control their property, It should have asked Apple to provide access to all conversations on all the phones bought for official government business. so the government failed and they are now trying to blame Apple for their failure.
Just goes to show you how the government is willing to use intimidation and the courts to violate YOUR Constitutional rights. If they DO NOT have their own experts, that is their problem. Let them figure out how to get information that may NO LONGER exist. Did they lose their magic wand?
Agree completely.
There is no reason to believe that the FBI is not corrupt in some of their operations. And then they try to use the force of the government (oops…a redundancy) to try to get someone else to pull them out of the mud. And since these two killers were already on the FBI’s watch lists, it needs to be answered: Why did they wait so long?
Also, I thought DHS was supposed to have these law enforcement agencies talking to each other. Where was the Department of Human Stupidity in this case?
Do you want to be unsafe if there is information on that phone that says (not saying this is true but it just to make a point) that they were going to attack your place of business and kill everyone in the business with bombs and guns and martyrs killing themselves in that business?? Would you want them to find out if that was true??? you have to look at both sides of this issue. Privatecy and safety due to a group of people who have come in to this country as refuges and are trying to kill us like they have in so many other places. Do you think that Christians who are being beheaded over in the Middle East will be any different when they get enough people in this country for them to do it here?? Every country they have gone into they have taken over and driven out or killed the infidels living there. Saudi use to have Christians in that country – not any more. Iraq use to have Christians in that country not now. Syria use to have Christians in that country who are hiding behind the Kurds right now. They will not go to the same refuge camps for they are raped. Look at what is happening to Germany and England where they are not allowing anyone to say anything bad about the Muslims for they think this will prevent a riot. However it won’t it just shows their ignorance. Do not believe me. Get the DVD which I did off of WND called Islam told by Muslims who have converted to Christians and they are giving us an understanding of how these people think, what there object is and the fact they have been fighting the same war which started in the 7th century up to today. They just have to have more children to kill the infidels. They will get strong in these western countries and then they fight to kill the infidels. Listen to them for they are telling you what they grew up with and use to believe. They are giving us an understanding of their beliefs and object. This is very serious for they do not think like a west person thinks nor is their religion like any other religion for it is attached to their form of Government Sharia. you can not say sharia is only government for it isn’t and their Islam is only their religion it is not. Get the DVD and learn how they view you?? It is called “Islam” and I got it off of WND but there could be other places to buy it.
The subject of our government breaking into our telephones reminds me of three ideas I like very much;
1) “Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But then I repeat myself.” Mark Twain
2) Democracy must be something more than two wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner. James Bovard, Civil Libertarian (1994)
3) No man’s life, liberty, or property is safe while the legislature is in session. — Mark Twain (1866)
Just goes to prove how really inept the Obama government is, but then we shouldn’t expect any less based on his past and most recent lack of accomplishments.
Are you saying the FBI’s inability to get to the date reflects an ineptness forced on them by Obama, or that Obama is inept for not reining in the FBI’s ridiculously anit-Constitutional position?
I goes to show you the ignorance of this judge.
Since the Government was unable to stop the terrorist from entering the Country (the wife), why should Apple give up its Customer’s rights because of the Government’s derelict?
I agree with you Ann
Not only would this be giving up our rights, would be certainly bad enough, BUT…………..IT WOULD BE GIVING UP ALL OUR INFORMATION!!!!! Some of us, use our iPhones for everything. Banking including, once this info is out there it’s out there. End of story!! The govt. as we know can f*ck up anything so why would we want to put anything else into their hands!! Especially something as important as this. Easy for non iPhone users to open up their big fat yaps on this situation but don’t worry they will find a way to get to your nasty phones!!
Look at Hillary and then think about how many industrial secrets get discussed over iPhones. Doesn’t have to be “state” secrets, could be “just” industrial secrets. If the FBI can brute force a phone today, sure as shooting China and Russia will be doing it tomorrow.
We the people are the government for we vote for the People who run the government and they appoint people to do various jobs. Apple in this case in my opinion is wrong. People are afraid if they do one phone they will have to do other phones for China and Russia who have requested this feature. This is not about encryption it is about turning off the delete feature of the I-phone so they can use the their own Software to find the password. The problem is when you try so many times the phone erases the data on the phone. Everyone thinks this is a slippery slope however we have had passwords before on our phones and this has keep our data person and also allows government to get access with a warrant and a justification to the court on why they need this phone opened. Remember Rand Paul stood up there and stated we need to take this out of the Patriot Act so that the Federal Government has to get a warrant and justify why they want the phone opened up. Seem to me this approach is not working. This will just go back into the Patriot act when the first bomb explodes or a person get killed. We are winning nothing by doing this and neither is Apple.
Ya lets open up the access so that hackers can get your bank records another way!!!!!
I would like to add that this phone was furnished by the county where He worked. They should have been responsible to have monitored their phone. Or at least to have set the passcode for the phone!!!! Also do you really think that He would use His work phone for this! Its already been communicated that there was smashed cell phones found in the terrorist garage!!! Thats where the phone info the FBI wants is!!!
i’m glad that at least ONE company is strenuously objecting to cooperation with oathbreakers(4th Amendment, specifically), and i’m glad that the judge is also seeing it their way – unlike Yahoo, for example, which rolled over like an obedient puppy when the Shrub’s maladminstration demanded that it turn over all it’s records without a warrant of any specificity whatsoever.
Looks like individuals are no longer strong enough to resist oathbreaking criminals, but it looks like Apple Corp. is doing well, so far. Maybe Apple should go on a counteroffensive, and demand to know what part of the Constitution or Amendments makes such a demand of the FBI – all sworn agents – Constitutional, then insist on their arrests and prosecutions for felony perjury should they be unable to cite any part of the document to which they swore their fealty that would allow for such trampling of the 4th Amendment.
i strongly suspect that should Apple does NOT pursue a counteroffensive, then the losing agents will unethically use their connections w/in alphabet agencies to harass, torment, fine, audit, and otherwise meddle with their ability to work and sell in America – or Amerika, as it is becoming.
Well said!
May God Bless the Judge and Mr. Cook in protecting our Constitution!! O’L Ben is right agin! Read his passage on giving up Freedom!! If the Govt wants to get into the phone? Call China or Putin they will have the kid that left NSA do it’????????????
More than one, actually. At least three other techs have filed “friend of the court” about it already.
Everybody, who take sides with Apple, on constitutional grounds argument, it is misplaced. Why, the FBI has comply with due process, end of story. All the FBI has to prove is “Exigency” so, Apple will lose in the end. Furthermore, the President can invoke the “War Powers Act”, case over. This is “WAR” .
I disagree that government has an interest in assuring that no door is too strong … Only a tyrannical government would assert its right to break into private property at its own pleasure.
How would you argue this case if Syed Farook and Tashfeen Malik had attacked a member of your family?
Same as I just did!
How would you argue the case if someone in your family died because some Russian hacker got a hold of bank data by hacking into a bank executive’s “secure” iPhone and wiped out your life’s savings? You gonna play the “it’s not my fault, you fix it” card and hope it gets fixed before the window of opportunity closes to treat them? How ’bout if an EMP developed from snooping on a “secure” industrialist’s conversations? Or even ended up unemployed because China stole your employer’s trade secrets and forced them out of business? What the FBI’s asking for cuts both ways, and you’re a naive fool if you think the bad guys won’t be able to get a hold of it.
Think I exaggerate? A discussion on another site had a posting from a cop: He said the only time their computers were ever hacked was through their FBI data link; the FBI insisted on certain permissions settings that hackers were more than willing to exploit. And the FBI wants the keys to everyone’s phones.
Easily- dangerous Freedom over “safe” slavery anyday!
No information on that phone will bring back any of the people killed. Good intelligence gathering and follow-up of suspicious people BEFORE they commit their heinous crimes is what is needed.
Carl-
i very much agree with you. After all, every man-jack federal employee is sworn to “preserve, protect, and defend” the principles laid out in the Constitution, which contains the 4th Amendment. The 4th Amendment, despite the criminality and Unconstitutionality of the USA PATRIOT act, is neither Amended nor trumped by the PA – so at the risk of being redundant, the Constitutionally-sworn agents should be brought up on charges of felony perjury/oath-breaking for repeated and multiple violations of the 4th Amendment they swore to uphold.
In our new world of terrorism we sometimes might be required as a company to give up some right to the benefit of our nations protection of its citizens.
But are we? There’s plenty of evidence to suggest that the FBI wouldn’t be able to keep such an ability to themselves. Are we safer if we–because of this “master key”–can’t keep a secret form China or Russia or Daesh, but they–by modifying the code in a way a politician or most executives wouldn’t bother to–can keep all their secrets from US?
In our new world of terrorism we sometimes might be required as a company to give up some right to the benefit of our nations protection of its citizens.
The solution to the problem was very simple at it’s beginning Don’t allow the Muslims in the country until their vetted inside and out. our Government has created this Not the people. They can’t balance a budget how can we expect any better of them in this matter.
Jim, you post a very logical post. I think I can agree with you!!!!!!!
YOU HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD JIM
I could spend several thousand words mentioning all the people who passed every test given to them, only to go off the deep end and start killing people. Muslims don’t have a monopoly on spree killing. Or even doing it becuase “God” told them to.
Wow, granted the FBI and the US Attorney’s Office may have dropped the ball with this argument but the greater good of identifying additional terrorists to prevent future loss of innocent lives surely trumps a dead terrorists rights. If Apple were an individual instead of a corporation they would be held in contempt and put in prison………….
Your understanding of the legal concept of “person” is sorely lacking. Both individuals and corporations are considered “persons” under the law. Whether natural or corporate, either can be held in contempt. That was the Government’s next step, but this judge ruled that the demand was illegal so, therefore, the contempt was BY the court, not of it.
Steve-
As a previous poster has noted, all cellphone and even portable home phones have been (Unconstitutionally, IMO) ruled to be “fair game,” and no privacy protections exist for them. As Snowden helpfully pointed out, the NSA has been recording all phone calls of everyone since at least 2001, probably sooner.
If Apple turns over this key, it won’t be used on just this ONE phone, but ALL of them. Maybe they can make a deal – find the data on the phone, turn all the data over to the Effa Bee Eye’rs, then destroy the phone so that they can’t use the key to continue to rape the Constitution they swore on oath to uphold against all enemies, foreign and themselves(domestic, that is).
Remember the 4th Amendment? FBI and every other alphabet agency public servant swore oaths to preserve, protect, and defend it against all enemies, foreign AND DOMESTIC. If they pursue this case against Apple, it is THEY who should be brought up on charges – felony perjury charges, for lying under oath…and, therefore, being Enemies of the Constitution.
Besides, “terrorism” presents SO many easy opportunities for false flag ops, REALLY easy ones. What these criminal oath-breakers appear to be trying to do(and succeeding at) is to scare Americans into giving up an Essential Right for some illusionary “security.” And American Idiots are buying it!
Only people who are crying “keep me safe, I’ll give up anything” are myopic enough to think this is about the “dead terrorists rights.” I doubt anyone who opposes the FBI’s actions on this give a rat’s a** about “dead terrorists rights.” If there were a means that would give access to that phone and ONLY that phone, there would be no argument. In fact, that’s what the FBI asked for. The problem is, that’s IMPOSSIBLE. There’s NO WAY to create a means of accessing a specific phone without that process being modifiable to ALL PHONES or at least that model. What we ARE concerned about is that this will give an organization that has a track record of being unable to keep it’s own data secure and is acting under the direction of an administration that has routinely ignored the Constitution the means to access millions of users’ data at will.
I can appreciate the delima this causes between law enforcement & the common criminal, yet we know that government has been known to overstep their bounds. In one way of looking at this, should law enforcement be able to use whatever means they have at their disposal to protect the general public from the lawlessness of terrorist hoodlums? Should citizens on the other hand be allowed to unknowingly incriminate themselves? It’s a hard question, usually I come down on the side of our guys out there trying to uphold our laws, but this is a hard one, I am willing to let our legal minds settle this one.
What is a “terrorist hoodlum”? And how easily do you think that definition can change? Do you realize most of the traits that describe a political conservative are used to define a potential terrorist? Or that EVERYONE who buys a motorcycle goes on an FBI watch list? Care to change your answer?
Oh, and citizens “unknowingly incriminate themselves” all the time. You commit three felonies a day. It’s just a matter of whether it’s worth the Feds’ while to haul you in over it. (If you’re politically “in” you can get away with a lot. If you’re a political liability, you get hauled in over peanuts.)
Apple is unAmerican. They would rather protect terrorist scum then allow them to be captured. They are in the Obama camp when it comes to scumbags. And don’t give me this protection crap. It is one phone. I’ve heard all the pros and cons. Apple is being unrealistic in its demands. They are more interested in protecting their brand than protecting Americans period.
It is not one phone. It is all I Phones and by extension all phones. The County’s IT worker changed the password and apparently lost it. The FBI technicians locked the phone by fooling with it. McAfee offered to unlock the phone and the FBI did not get back to them. Why is all of this being blamed on Apple?
I hadn’t read anything about the county changing the password. If they changed it, then couldn’t a search of THEIR systems reveal it?
Clearly you have no understanding of what “American” means. You might want to go read the constitution and bill of rights before you post again.
It is NOT one phone. That’s the problem. It CAN’T be about one phone, no matter how much the FBI wants it to be. The only way to create an access to a phone that may not have anything useful on it, anyway, will compromise MILLIONS of phones.
I have to think as, horrible as what happened out in Cali., No Government, should have the power to force a company to break a contract of privacy. When you by a phone, the FCC considers any transmission thru the air open for listening, with out a warrant. weather its a cell or a home phone that is wireless. the air waves belong to the Government. Or We The People. Our Government already records all the calls made inside our country, then data mines them for threats. I still feel its wrong and a direct violation of our rights. We continue to have our rights and liberties chiped away for the safety of the many. We all better start standing up for those little chips, before the mountain slides off and crushes our freedoms…..
Sorry. Couldn’t hear you through the miles of mud on top of me.
An eye witness, on the scene, reported that the shooting was done by three White men who were above average in size, athletic physiques and who were dressed in similar attire. It appears that the couple who were murdered – allegedly affiliated with ISIL – were pre-selected victims to be scapegoated by the FBI. One might think that they have been under FBI surveillance, and due to their associates were appropriate to be sacrificed in order to blame Islam, once again fraudulently, and with the two victims dead can attempt to close the case. There are similarities between this occurrence and the Lavoy Finnicum murder.
DR BE HEALTHY I THINK YOU ARE STRECHING THIS ONE. ILL DO BETTER THAN THAT, I NEVER HEARD OF THIS CONSPIRACY BEFORE, AND ALL THE PIPE BOMBS AND AMMO WHERE PLANTED BY THE COUNTY SHERRIFF. THE NEIGHBORS TESTIMONY WAS ALL FALSE AND LIES. GET A GRIP AN ZIP YOUR LIPP.
And eye witnesses on the scene said Michael Brown had his hands up, even the witnesses who had previously said (on cell phone video) Brown was going after the cop.
Thank goodness for a sound legally based judgement having due regard to the freedoms and liberties of the citizen
If the FBI wants the data on the iPhone they should go to see FoxConn in China. They build and know everything about the software and operation of these cell phones!
And you think Apple doesn’t know their own product?
“At least partly inspired by…Islamic..” are you serious? Whom are you trying to excuse or protect? This was Islamic terrorism! PARTLY inspired???
This doesn’t, surprise me, this is the same company that has billions of dollars overseas so they can keep from paying taxes. Sadly many people stand in line like sheep to get
the latest product. IMHO
Each judgment in Apple’s favor makes it more difficult for the government to succeed with similar requests in the future. Maybe the government should have done a better job preparing for court.
Lots of pros and cons here. Good debate subject,”our government.”
When is our government agencies going to learn. These scum suck’n Muslim’s will enslave who they can and those that they can’t, they will kill. Government protection my ass. Remember “fast and furious” (a government operation) remember “2001” (a government operation) remember “ruby ridge” (yep, another government operation.)
The FBI in the SB, CA case is completely grandstanding… The iPhone in question in that case was not even the shooters personal phone (which they destroyed just prior to the act)… This is simply a ply by the DOJ to weaken the country’s most popular smartphone OS and allow them to snoop unbridled into every iPhone out there! All in the name of “national security”!
“Those who would exchange an ounce of liberty for the sake of security, deserves neither.” ~ Ben Franklin
“I prefer dangerous freedom to safe servitude.” ~ Thomas Jefferson
This is an unprecedented action by the government and needs to be crushed! The Snowden revelations showed us that the government cannot be trusted at all… To correct the magistrate when he says “…reflects poorly on a government that exists in part to safeguard the freedom of its citizens.” The Declaration of Independence makes it clear that it is the PRIMARY role of government; “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men” (Declaration of Independence 1776).
I think this whole FBI verses apple is a dog and pony show, After the exposure by Edward Snowden, people and countries, have been greatly concerned , the NSA was recording every keystroke, e mail,tweet, facebook post, any electronics,Was being spied on, including Congress.
The FBY tried to conceal the Sting Ray sold by the Harris Corp in florida, which , causes your phone to connect to the stingray, while you think you are still on a cellphone tower, and no they rarely get a warrant, or post date one at best. So To keep consumers on board they had to make a case that the Gov can not breach an I Phone. I say BS . The Media gladly play their roll, as newspapers, follow suit. Look up how very few people who control all Movie, internet, tv, social media. It is a Cabal a small one. You can buy into this Guys. and Gals our Phones are safe see right here on TV, Newspaper, all Social Media, you can trust us. Sound’s so Good Right.
Sure. That’s why Apple removed the feature that would have given the FBI relatively easy access to iPhones in 2014. Remind me when Snowden went public? 2012? Coincidence?
Im all for people’s rights. The constitution was not meant to protect terrorists and illegal immigrants. It gives rights to law-abiding citizens. I would be devastated to find out . That there was info that could prevent the next terrorist attack on that phone. Maybe saving the lives of our families.
No it was meant to protect citizens. I don’t have a smartphone, but if I did, what gives you the right to hand mine over to the Government? Because that’s effectively what you’re wanting to do. We’re not supposed to throw innocents under the bus in the pursuit of criminals. And yet, here and now, you’re saying “I don’t care how many American citizens get hurt tomorrow, I want to prove we can do anything we want with these guys we’re calling ‘terrorists’ TODAY.”
If Apple has the technology/knowhow to open the phone it can open any phone, possibly when off line? How do we know they have not opened thousands of phones for NSA or other govt agencies. To open this phone might very well expose what they have already done. Privacy is a faux argument, like O is a faux president.
The govt has lost contact with the citizens, The vast majority of citizens do not trust or believe anything that comes out of DC. Including faux, SC decisions that any connection with justice is purely coincidental. Patronage, machine politics with justices that empathize instead of seek justice “rules” our govt!! We the voters are just being played as suckers, idiots. Keep in mind that killing 6 million jews in Germany by the govt, with court approval was legal. Baby lives should matter, not just black lives. Russia has its gulags so govt has a very dangerous past when it comes to oppression and rule. This oppression exists big time in Islamic countries because islam is the mother of all socialism. And with super delegates the democrats appear to have a new way to “stuff” the ballot boxes. National stuffing instead of local stuffing like the Duke of Duval in Texas? The party is trying to cover up it’s Benghazi and server past by transferring a potential outlaw from SOS to prez candidate instead of prosecuting??
The government has been proven wrong oh so many times that they cannot be trusted !!!!!
They are just mad or jealous because their tech idiots are not as smart as snowden and they cant figure out how to get into apple phones to hack them
I agree that apple should not give them any access or any secrets to protect our privacy the constitution provides all of us
the gov’t is jealous because apple is smarter than they arewe need a highly ethical and trustworthy person in charge, unlike our current loser and constitution breaker
Innocent until proved guilty. Do most realize the significance of this legal right? Probably not because the vast majority of people are not exposed to situations where govt can lock you up. But to this nations exceptional credit we even applied this to the nazia after WWII. Then along comes Obama and put out a contract on obl using Seals. In iran they have a fatwa on a guy for blasphemy issued by their ayatollah. And of course the jews were killed just because they were Jews. Does anyone but muslims want sharia law with it’s fstwas, honor killing and no telling what else. All in the name of allah? Or is it really nothing but in the name of Mohammed? If the Triune God of the bible had followers like muslims using the koran in His name I can only imagine He would at a min be embarrassed. His message is love, not jihad!
Christians don’t have “jihad,” they have “Crusades.” “A rose by any other name . . . ”
Though in this case “corpse flower” would be more appropriate.
Absolute power, corrupts absolutely. Once it’s unlocked, it’s unlocked on everyone’s iPhones including future ones.
anything that was on that phone is lost because of the fbi’s stupidity they don’t need help
because their they have already proven their incompetence
don’t give them anything
Michael-
i completely agree with you, and have posted similarly in the past – only to be told(and regretfully, it is true) that the DoI is not a legal document, ergo not legally binding on any gov’t employees.
Nevertheless, i still think that gov’t employees ought to be arrested as often as are perjurers, and for the same reason: lying under oath. To my knowledge, there have been hundreds of thousands, if not millions – of violations of oaths of office since 1789, but you know how many have been arrested for perjury? For lying under their oaths of office? EVER?
ZERO.
That sad-sack situation needs to change in a hurry, if Americans stand ANY chance of regaining control of their putative “public servants” and ostensible “public employees” again, at least by peaceable and lawful means. Every oath broken is a betrayal of the public trust, and we don’t need ANY such betrayers in government in any position. EVER.
IF the FBI hadn’t changed the passcode in the first place, they wouldn’t be in this spot! I understand that Apple doesn’t want to allow the FBI access to anybody’s cell phone, but, I don’t understand why the FBI doesn’t allow Apple to access the data for them. (This was an offer that Apple made.) They want access to all of our iPhones.
Thank you. Another defeat for the government trying to forcefully take away our constitutional right to privacy, If the government had been doing its job, the event in San Bernardino would never have happened. Thanks to the Obama administration, we have a slack government agency. Things are going to take a BIG turn, once the election is over.
Hillary is going to follow obumbas policy, and give cash awards at the border, to all aliens passing thru.
How can one corporation force another corporation to do their bidding? How can a corporation force a private man of the land to do their bidding? Force and violence and harm. As it has been quoted, “Law stands mute in the midst of arms”.
Cicero
The big question is, why does everyone keep calling this corporate fascist regime a government??
Why can’t Apple get the information from the phone & give it to the FBI. The Apple tech sits in a room with a glass window/wall while the FBI watches from other side of the window/wall & will not have eyes on the process. The FBI will not be provided an operational plan that enables them to eaves drop on anyone with an Apple phone. It’s San Bernadino’s phone. Why does Apple want to enable terrorist & maybe save some lives in the meantime.
i see a lot of misunderstanding of the Constitution, here. Not surprising; most of us were brought up in the Public Fool system and don’t know any better.
As the DoI makes clear, Jefferson and the rest of the F&F strongly believed that all our Rights come from our Creator. NONE of them come from any piece of paper. Never have – never will.
So to say “Constitutional Rights” is to imply that this piece of paper “gives” us our Rights. It doesn’t. What the Constitution was designed to do was to CONTROL GOVERNMENT agents, to PREVENT THEM from trampling on the Rights given by God.
So technically, then, what is true is that our Rights should be described as “Constitutionally-SECURED,” and they’re ONLY AS GOOD as the honor and integrity of those who swear on oath to “preserve, protect and defend” these God-given Rights “against all enemies, foreign and domestic.”…that, and our as-yet-never-exercised Right to have any oath-BREAKER arrested, tried, convicted of Felony perjury, and forbidden any further public service on the public dime, at a minimum for betraying the trust the People placed in them, and because if you’re going to swear to ‘preserve, protect, and defend” it’s principles “against all enemies, foreign and domestic,” then you damn-well ought ot know what it SAYS and WORK YOUR DAMNED ASS OFF to make CERTAIN that these Rights are trampled by NO ONE, or you won’t WORK FOR US ANY MORE. Stupid oath-TAKERS, no one needs, as in “too stupid to know what the Constitution says and what your damned oath means,” of course.
The thing to remember, here, is that if you are sure a piece of paper “gives” you your Rights, another piece of paper can take them away – for example, like a completely Unconstitutional declaration of “martial law.” Show me that part of the Constitution which would allow ANY gov’t actor to declare or impose military rule for any reason other than insurrection or rebellion. You know that various Presidents, ostensibly under provisions of the War Powers Act from Lincoln(thanks, Abe), have used completely UNCONSTITUTIONAL “Executive Orders” to give themselves an unbelievable array of completely Unconstitutional powers if any president – under any scenario, even a paranoid delusion, a perverse imagination, a false flag that can be blamed on “terrorists,” or no reason at all – decides to declare an “emergency”? It’s UTTER BULLSHIT, of course, but most of the sheeple will go along, because they’ve been dumbed down so far that they don’t comprehend that the Constitution is the SUPREME law of the land, and ANY and EVERY violation of it – any and EVERY seizure and exercise of powers NOT GRANTED – means that such Orders are Unconstitutional. If they’re Unconstitutional, they’re UNlawful, by definition. Anything UNLAWFUL is also ILLEGAL. Anything ILLEGAL is also CRIMINAL, so you not only do not have to obey any Unconstitutional order, you, as an American Citizen, have the DUTY to not only disobey, but the RIGHT to place as many oath-breaking criminals as you find UNDER ARREST.
It is the Obama administration’s screwed up ‘MUSLIM’ immigration policies, ie: political correctness (have you hugged your peace loving, radical, Islamic Muslim today) over ‘NATIONAL SECURITY’ that caused this travesty in America not Apple.
Let’s place the blame where it belongs.