john galt

Gatekeeper "goes too far"? Hardly.

An effective security strategy is a multilayered one, and Gatekeeper is just one part of an overall mindset that any computer user must adopt in order to avoid inadvertently installing malware, or just simply junk software. Gatekeeper is also easily bypassed by control-clicking the app (no, command-click is incorrect). A two-finger tap works also. That will cause the dialog box in the illustration to appear. It's incumbent upon the user to read, comprehend, and act upon what it says.

If the user doesn't do that, well, they get what's coming to them. You can't fix stupid.

"... only do this if you're sure the app is from a reputable developer and has not been tampered with."

You can't really rely upon that either. Even reputable developers have had their distribution sites hacked.

Come on Apple. We can trust our government. They never lie to us about anything.

Don't worry! If you like your encryption, you can keep your encryption!

 "The CEO of Apple needs to know he's not above the law, and neither is anybody else in the United States."

That includes the FBI. Or doesn't he know that? 

... and every single one of the Republican candidates for President of this once great nation advocated compelling Apple to yield to the overwhelming power of government to compel them to create a product that does not exist and for which there is no market need. That confirmed beyond any doubt there is no difference among those elected to allegedly serve the public: they're all sick twisted control freaks, no matter what color they might be. None of them has a clue what's at stake in this case. Worse yet is that they're not interested in learning. Nothing good will come of this, not for Apple, not for the public, not for the families of the particular case that's being exploited to fulfill the FBI's wishes, and certainly not future victims of crimes yet to be committed. The latter will certainly become out of control, once it becomes possible for any lowlife to crack into everyone else's personal information. That is the logical result of creating that ability. To see it one must think logically; to connect the dots. It shouldn't take a genius but none of the idiots on that podium appear to be capable of that.

"Positioning their refusal to cooperate as having anything to do with privacy interests is a corporate PR stunt and ignores the 4th Amendment protections afforded by our Constitution." A comment that illustrates that genius has limits but ignorance knows no bounds.