US Attorney General 'hopes' Apple will unlock San Bernardino iPhone

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in iPhone
U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch weighed in on Apple's fight with the FBI on Tuesday, saying she would prefer that Apple comply with the recent court order directing the company to unlock the San Bernardino shooter's iPhone.




"It is still our hope that they will see their way clear to complying with that order as thousands of other companies do every day," Lynch said, as noted by Reuters. The comment comes ahead of a scheduled appearance at a Silicon Valley cybersecurity conference.

At the conference, Lynch plans to tell tech companies that there must be a balance between personal security and national security.

"The going-dark problem is a very real threat to law enforcement's mission to protect public safety and ensure that criminals are caught and held accountable," she will say, according to the Wall Street Journal. "We owe it to the victims and to the public, whose safety we must protect, to ensure we have done everything under the law to fully investigate terrorist attacks and criminal activity on American soil."

Most major American tech companies have lined up behind Apple, which scored a significant -- though not decisive -- victory in New York earlier in the week when a judge ruled that the FBI overstepped its bounds in using the All Writs Act to compel Apple's compliance.

"[The FBI's] preferred reading of the law - which allows a court to confer on the executive branch any investigative authority Congress has decided to withhold, so long as it has not affirmatively outlawed it - would transform the AWA from a limited gap-filing statute that ensures the smooth functioning of the judiciary itself into a mechanism for upending the separation of powers by delegating to the judiciary a legislative power bounded only by Congress's superior ability to prohibit or preempt," New York Magistrate Judge James Orenstein wrote in his decision.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 71
    Another idiot.

    Are those thousands of other companies being forced to write a custom OS (backdoor) as well? Or are they simply handing over emails after being served with a court order?

    Edited: Did she also forget Apple has ALREADY handed over what they were capable of? Like iCloud backups?
    edited March 2016 anantksundaramNeo111baconstangjbdragonboltsfan17tallest skilstevehfotoformaticoco3ewtheckman
  • Reply 2 of 71
    jameskatt2jameskatt2 Posts: 720member
    If forced to unlock iPhones, Apple should charge TEN BILLION DOLLARS PER iPHONE. 
    Make sure the cost is high enough to make attorneys thing a long time.
    After all, they are using Apple's expertise.  So they should pay for it.

    anantksundaramNeo111tallest skillostkiwilatifbpuraharacornchipbadmonk
  • Reply 3 of 71
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    If only it were all as simple as a few hopes. The US government disgusts me.
    jbdragontallest skillostkiwiSpamSandwichlatifbpuraharacornchippropodtdknoxjony0
  • Reply 4 of 71
    ceek74ceek74 Posts: 324member
    And people wonder why America has become a laughing stock.  Just layer upon layer of mindless drones.
    jdgazmwhitejbdragontallest skilewtheckmanlostkiwibuzdotsuraharacornchippropod
  • Reply 5 of 71
    Neo111Neo111 Posts: 3member
    Another idiot.

    Are those thousands of other companies being forced to write a custom OS (backdoor) as well? Or are they simply handing over emails after being served with a court order?

    Edited: Did she also forget Apple has ALREADY handed over what they were capable of? Like iCloud backups?

    Who appointed this stupid person?  Evidently she has been under a rock the past week and has not been briefed of all the evidence Apple has provided of their assistance to the FBI.   Along with the fact it was the work phone which most likely did not have any data on it unlike the personal phone that was destroyed.  
    jdgazjbdragontallest skilewtheckmanlostkiwibancholatifbpuraharacornchiptdknox
  • Reply 6 of 71
    maestro64maestro64 Posts: 5,043member
    Going dark is not a new concept for the Government to deal with when fighting crime and such. Why do you think why the government is unable to catch large drug dealer and such and prosecute them on drug charges. Hell they put Al Capone in jail on tax violations verses all the other bad things he did. He went dark on them and avoid doing and using stuff which allow the government to track what he was doing. They trying to make this into a new issue they never had to deal with. The only difference it they running into the issue with small time crooks.
    jbdragonewtheckmanlostkiwilatifbppalominecornchiptdknoxjony0
  • Reply 7 of 71
    rob53rob53 Posts: 3,241member
    Has anyone said whether Apple and other companies are gathering information for free or whether the police/FBI pay them for their time? I would like to see the law that says they have to do it for free otherwise I agree with @james, they should make sure it hurts to keep the frivolous requests to a minimum. 

    Of course, Lynch needs to take a basic class in computers to keep from making misguided comments. 
    lostkiwilatifbp
  • Reply 8 of 71
    roakeroake Posts: 809member
    At one point, I was subpoenaed to testify as an expert witness in a case that was scheduled to last two days in court (I am a physician).  The subpoena had a check attached to it, which was to be my pay for whatever preparation time was involved, and the two days of attending court, my time on the stand, etc.

    That check was made out for just under $18.00.  I doubt it would have been enough to pay for the parking.  Also, I had duties at the hospital... they didn't care.  There were patients scheduled that would have to be rescheduled on an already full schedule... they didn't care.  Had they gone through traditional channels and hired a physician expert witness, the cost would have been significant.  This is probably why they chose simply to subpoena someone instead (although I cannot imagine what made them think I would not *destroy* the case of the requesting attorney - because I would have).

    Obviously, I didn't roll over and take that.  My own attorney made the issue messy enough for them that they dropped me from the list of expert witnesses.  But the total cost in dealing with that was several thousand dollars.

    But I was only one of many physicians that were subpoenaed in that case.  All they needed was one physician not to fight it.

    The point is, Apple might ask for a trillion dollars to unlock a phone, but a judge would never grant that.  In reality, if they are ordered to do something by the court, and they cannot get it overturned on appeal, they have to do it.  With regard to reimbursement, they can't just charge whatever they want.


    stevehjbdragonpscooter63theunfetteredminduraharacornchip
  • Reply 9 of 71
    tmaytmay Posts: 6,309member
    ceek74 said:
    And people wonder why America has become a laughing stock.  Just layer upon layer of mindless drones.
    We're only a laughing stock if this isn't able to resolved in Congress or ultimately, in the Supreme Court. It will end up being complicated and time consuming to find a solution and that is expected.  We don't want another Patriot Act, driven by a highly emotional events with secret courts and all that.

    If successful, and it will be a compromised solution, it will probably be a legal model for other Western countries, and hopefully China. As long as there are no backdoors, I'm good.
    edited March 2016 ai46cornchip
  • Reply 10 of 71
    wood1208wood1208 Posts: 2,905member
    Obama appointed another idiot to this important government post to prove diversity.
    Neo111tallest skiljbdragonboltsfan17ewtheckmanbdkennedy1002buzdotsuraharaindyfxcornchip
  • Reply 11 of 71
    Neo111Neo111 Posts: 3member
    If forced to unlock iPhones, Apple should charge TEN BILLION DOLLARS PER iPHONE. 
    Make sure the cost is high enough to make attorneys thing a long time.
    After all, they are using Apple's expertise.  So they should pay for it.


    I agree.  If Apple is forced to unlock the phone they should definitely charge an insane amount for the service.   No where in any of this is the FBI asking for this software for free.   In addition, the FBI should hand the phone over to Apple and within Apple's facility Apple would unlock it, extract any relevant data, allow the FBI to view the collected data, then immediately wipe the phone clean, destroy the phone through a metal shredder and melt the thing for good measure.   If the FBI has any opportunity to copy the software I guarantee they will try it and then in their infamous wonder store it on a server and some hacker will hack into their server and steal the software and proliferate it.  
    steveh
  • Reply 12 of 71
    borkbork Posts: 1member
    The government spying on it's citizens is not acceptable. A judge should be let off the hook. Congress is the representative of their constituency. Does congress want their people spied on by their own government? I see a slippery slope.
  • Reply 13 of 71
    I believe it is time for another amendment to the U.S. Constitution.  A Bill of Digital Freedoms and Rights which explicitly spells out what our privacy is and what the government can and cannot do.  Simple, concise.  
  • Reply 14 of 71
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    If hopes and wishes were potato knishes, then every day would be... really weird.
  • Reply 15 of 71
    jbdragonjbdragon Posts: 2,305member
    maestro64 said:
    Going dark is not a new concept for the Government to deal with when fighting crime and such. Why do you think why the government is unable to catch large drug dealer and such and prosecute them on drug charges. Hell they put Al Capone in jail on tax violations verses all the other bad things he did. He went dark on them and avoid doing and using stuff which allow the government to track what he was doing. They trying to make this into a new issue they never had to deal with. The only difference it they running into the issue with small time crooks.
    Al this talk of going dark, when in fact the opposite is true!!! While the phone may get more encrypted, people are installing more and more other electronic devices into their house that the Government could use. From Amazon Echo, and Xbox Kinect, to Wifi Camera's, and so many other things if they wanted. Most of this stuff has pretty weak security.
    lostkiwiNeo111banchocornchip
  • Reply 16 of 71
    Neo111 said:
    Another idiot.

    Are those thousands of other companies being forced to write a custom OS (backdoor) as well? Or are they simply handing over emails after being served with a court order?

    Edited: Did she also forget Apple has ALREADY handed over what they were capable of? Like iCloud backups?

    Who appointed this stupid person?  Evidently she has been under a rock the past week and has not been briefed of all the evidence Apple has provided of their assistance to the FBI.   Along with the fact it was the work phone which most likely did not have any data on it unlike the personal phone that was destroyed.  
    To answer your question, President Obama appointed US Attorney General Loretta Lynch.  
  • Reply 17 of 71
    kent909kent909 Posts: 731member
    Hate to be cynical here but I don't think a day goes by that I don't hear someone say how busy they are. We are so busy with our own lives that millions of us cannot find the time to vote in major elections. The amount of time we need to be spending to resist this gradual loss of liberty and freedom is more that we will provide for. We are on a slippery slope and gaining speed everyday. I feel sad for  my granddaughter who is going to is going to grow up in a world that looks nothing like what it should. Today America will speak and it will say we want Trump and Hillary. Let the chaos begin. Gotta run I have a busy day ahead of me making money.
    lostkiwicornchip
  • Reply 18 of 71
    I 'hope' U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch will now step down from her role as U.S. Attorney General.
    tallest skillatifbpuraharacornchip
  • Reply 19 of 71
    jbdragonjbdragon Posts: 2,305member
    wood1208 said:
    Obama appointed another idiot to this important government post to prove diversity.
    It's not like OBAMA has any skill at anything. He's never run anything in his life. Community Organizer,..What a joke of a whatever. This is how things are now. Lower standards to get someone into that job. The whole White Standard or White TEST and that's why they fail, what the hell does that even mean? The questions literally are Black & White on more then one level? Just so I'm not picking on the black guy, the Clinton's butts, both should be thrown in jail for their criminal acts over the years.
    tallest skilcornchip
  • Reply 20 of 71
    foggyhillfoggyhill Posts: 4,767member
    Hope springs eternal doesn't it....
    What does the "hope" thing mean?
    Is that a weird euphemism?
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