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Quick recap / summary:

1. Apple does NOT have any "key" to give the FBI or anyone else.
2. The FBI is not asking for a "key", but instead for a special firmware build which will allow them to try each of the 10,000 4-digit passcodes for the device without either activating the soft-lockout (after I think 9 attempts it takes an hour between allowed attempts) or the 10th-failure-data-wipe feature which may or may not be on on the device.
3. Such a firmware build would have to be signed by Apple, and would allow intrusion on any existing iPhone in physical custody.
4. The warrant asks that the specific build be tied to this specific phone, but it is unlikely that this serial-number lock could be engineered as tamper-proof.
5. Finally, if Apple establishes precedent here, that precedent will be applied by various countries around the world (and rumor is that significant pressure to do exactly this has previously been applied by China, and that giving in to the FBI will lead directly to Apple being required to do the same for China as a cost of doing business in that country).

Also: White House Petition to Side With Apple in FBI Fight

I don't think the FBI is requiring direct access to the firmware build. Various countries around the world now know Apple can do this..I don't think they'll wait for precedent in the US to start asking for the same from Apple.
 
So the FBI have backups to October 19th yet want Apple to code a completely new version of iOS for a few days worth of data. If they understand the implications of their own request, then they are insane, if they don't then they are incompetent.
 
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"Even if the password had not been changed and Apple could have turned on the auto-backup and loaded it to the cloud, there might be information on the phone that would not be accessible without Apple's assistance as required by the All Writs Act order..."
Using weasel words such as "might be" really weakens any government arguments for help from Apple.

So you want the courts to put people in jail with no evidence? No need for investigations or searching iphones? Yeah the killers are dead but their gun supplier is still free.
 
Trump went off the cuff, spoke too soon without knowing the true facts. That's why he has shut his mouth about the topic since. Even he knows now deep down what the Feds are asking is insane.

Not sure why you would project self-awareness onto Trump, but he's been talking about boycotting Apple for the past three days. When exactly did he shut his mouth about the topic? It took at least two days for him to stop beating the pro-backdoor bush, and the very last thing he said on Friday was to boycott all Apple products followed by a statement that he used both Samsung and Apple phones and would be switching to just tweeting from Samsung several hours later.

He has been talking it up more than any of the other Republican candidates, and more recently. The only thing that pushed it off his Twitter stream were the South Carolina primaries. It is important to note that nowhere in there has he said "oh, maybe Apple is right"; the standing last opinion on the matter is that Apple should be boycotted until they give in to the FBI.

Not sure how you think the Pope is a hypocrite for calling out the un-Christian nature of Trump (who professes Christianity, so I think it is fair to judge him based on adherence to that faith) talking about building a wall to keep immigrants out - the specific interview asked him a rather pointed question about Trump's position on immigrants, the Pope answered that he wasn't familiar with Trump's positions but if the characterization was accurate that he wasn't a follower of Christ. I could see you saying that the question was an unfair characterization of Trump's position, which would be interesting to discuss, but the Pope's statement as was given seems so prima facie obvious and true that I can't see how it would make him a hypocrite to say it. Has the Pope been involved in immigration-related humanitarian disasters recently that I haven't heard about?

Anyway, way off topic.
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America seemed to have done alright following Judeo Christian principles since its inception, ultimately becoming a superpower and technological marvel and a trustworthy benevolent neighbor, only until recently being unraveled by the Left.

Ah, a reader of the David Barton alternative-history fiction series I see.

Hint: a large portion of the Founding Fathers were not at all Theists as modern Christians are, but rather Deists (or at most Christians in name but who completely dismissed the miracle/intervention aspects which are central tenets of that faith), some (severe minority and only some of the time) bordering on atheism. One of our first treaties - the Treaty of Tripoli - specifically stated "The government of the United States of America is not in any sense founded on the Christian Religion", which seems pretty damning to the idea that Christianity has some special place in the US government.

Mention of God in various national inscriptions came about in the 1950s in response to the anti-religion nature of the Soviet Union. The idea of the "United States Under God" is an entirely modern invention and has very little historical underpinning.
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I don't think the FBI is requiring direct access to the firmware build. Various countries around the world now know Apple can do this..I don't think they'll wait for precedent in the US to start asking for the same from Apple.

Apple can say "no" to another country much more forcibly if they did not already say "yes" to the same request in the US. Countries have long known that this is possible, and have - according to rumors at least - long asked for Apple to give them these special tools and capabilities. Apple has been able to say no, both because they have not offered that to any nation, and because creating such a tool would require a significant expense to Apple. The politics there are not exactly easy, but they are straightforward. Take away those two excuses and Apple either does the same for all nations who ask or is accused of favoring certain nations in the world. Suddenly the politics become much much harder and impossibly complicated to navigate.
 
Not sure why you would project self-awareness onto Trump, but he's been talking about boycotting Apple for the past three days. When exactly did he shut his mouth about the topic? It took at least two days for him to stop beating the pro-backdoor bush, and the very last thing he said on Friday was to boycott all Apple products followed by a statement that he used both Samsung and Apple phones and would be switching to just tweeting from Samsung several hours later.

He has been talking it up more than any of the other Republican candidates, and more recently. The only thing that pushed it off his Twitter stream were the South Carolina primaries. It is important to note that nowhere in there has he said "oh, maybe Apple is right"; the standing last opinion on the matter is that Apple should be boycotted until they give in to the FBI.

Not sure how you think the Pope is a hypocrite for calling out the un-Christian nature of Trump (who professes Christianity, so I think it is fair to judge him based on adherence to that faith) talking about building a wall to keep immigrants out - the specific interview asked him a rather pointed question about Trump's position on immigrants, the Pope answered that he wasn't familiar with Trump's positions but if the characterization was accurate that he wasn't a follower of Christ. I could see you saying that the question was an unfair characterization of Trump's position, which would be interesting to discuss, but the Pope's statement as was given seems so prima facie obvious and true that I can't see how it would make him a hypocrite to say it. Has the Pope been involved in immigration-related humanitarian disasters recently that I haven't heard about?

Anyway, way off topic.
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Ah, a reader of the David Barton alternative-history fiction series I see.

Hint: a large portion of the Founding Fathers were not at all Theists as modern Christians are, but rather Deists (or at most Christians in name but who completely dismissed the miracle/intervention aspects which are central tenets of that faith), some (severe minority and only some of the time) bordering on atheism. One of our first treaties - the Treaty of Tripoli - specifically stated "The government of the United States of America is not in any sense founded on the Christian Religion", which seems pretty damning to the idea that Christianity has some special place in the US government.

Mention of God in various national inscriptions came about in the 1950s in response to the anti-religion nature of the Soviet Union. The idea of the "United States Under God" is an entirely modern invention and has very little historical underpinning.


3 days is pushing it. Trump tweeted boycott apple and that was it. It has not been in the news since the first day and it isn't even s topic now or at Saturday's primary. I'm not into politics and really don't want to feel like I'm sticking up for trump( in a way I guess I am). To me it's clear, he went off the cuff which he is known to do, an insider told him to **** up and now he did. Seems pretty clear to me.
As for the pope well just look at all the things the Catholic Church has tried covering up for decades. It goes on and on. And just look at the walls around the Vatican. Pope has no business sticking his nose where it does not belong, and to call someone unchristian like lol really? He loses his temper(plenty video shows this) and to be honest I think the whole entire Catholic Church is nothing but a big scam.
 
How do you know this is about beating on Apple?

Because Comey says it isn't...

In a decaying democracy, it seems that anything that can provide any security from the government is something to be attacked and destroyed. Ford forbid that we put a lock on our underwear drawer...

Why, it's almost like COINTELPRO never happened.
 
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Everyone talks of striking or walking out or putting up resistance. Is Cook going to be paralleled to Mandala, Ghandi, King, or others, with any issues that might tarnish the "good guy" visage being swept under the rug, but it's nice to see him win people over with the dog and pony show he's putting on.

Maybe he'll finally get around to fixing the child labor, worker suicides, other human rights abuses, and the latest chapter: http://fortune.com/2016/01/19/apple-child-labor/ (if those companies are linked, then so are the customers? Why or why not? Can everyone simply "vote with their wallets" or is reality a little less simple than what we delude ourselves with via quotes such as that one? ;) )
 
This is clearly about providing a safe environment for customers. Given his stated position, Tim Cook is justifiably sensitive to the threat of unauthorised entry through the back door.
 
And hope it goes through without issue. Apple is going to have to thoroughly test it or else that data is gone.:D

Yeah, a big grin over a person who apparently shot a lot of people in cold blood with the phone containing possible evidence of what is a little more severe than throwing a piece of paper out the car window while cruising 65mph on the highway whose speed limit is 55.

SICK. Maybe you'd care if it was your family that got shot? (Still grinning?? Thought not.)


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Pretty much. Pity the issue isn't that big.
 
So you want the courts to put people in jail with no evidence? No need for investigations or searching iphones? Yeah the killers are dead but their gun supplier is still free.

Ever heard the word "fishing expedition"? The FBI wouldn't have any right to a search warrant for a phone that _might_ contain evidence. They need a good reason to believe there is evidence. Even in a murder case.

Actually, since the murder case is solved, and you claim they are looking for gun suppliers (which you are making up, and there must be better ways to find the gun supplier than going through the guy's works phone, and the gun supplier might have supplied the weapons completely legally), the FBI would need a good reason to believe that there is evidence against the gun supplier on the phone. Fishing expedition. Illegal.
 
The chain of custody of this evidence has been broken. The phone has no further value in this case. Full Stop.

The FBI had all the meta data, they knew who the individual was in contact with, they could have run with that, but no, they wanted to set a precedent to gain access to any phone, and now they've blown it completely.

Can't wait to see Apple challenge this.
 
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I am still with the FBI in this case. Apple should have just quietly helped on their own terms meaning the FBI gets the data but never the iOS version that unlocks the phone.
The FBI made that kind of impossible. They were the ones taking Apple to court. The FBI was the one going public (a court is public), so they are total hypocrites for complaining about Apple going public.
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Does Apple actually have the ability to force an iPhone to accept an update without logging into it?
Nobody knows. There's probably someone at Apple who could figure it out, but he isn't going to try until Apple loses a court case, and then he might fail.
 
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The FBI made that kind of impossible. They were the ones taking Apple to court. The FBI was the one going public (a court is public), so they are total hypocrites for complaining about Apple going public.

I just read the latest explanation on Apple site and I slowly move towards supporting Apple on this. Not that it counted but still....
 
I'm sure Apple already has a backdoor version of iPhone made... like they did for PowerPC and Intel... "just in case scenario"

That's the biggest problem with the world today... so many people being "sure" based on their feelings, with absolutely zero evidence.
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Nice that you can sit back and not have an opinion on this. Do you consider the privacy vs. security issue to be unimportant?
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Pope has no business sticking his nose where it does not belong, and to call someone unchristian like lol really?

While I'm not a Christian myself, I am aware that excommunication is part of some Christian traditions including Catholicism. In addition, for the Catholics, the Vatican does determine what is consistent with their religion, and what is not. It seems to me that the Pope making a determination as to whether something is "Christian" or not fits nicely into his job description.
 
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They don't have a key. What the FBI wants Apple to do is to write a custom version of iOS that ignores some of the security features and makes a brute force attack feasible.

Even if Apple did create a version of iOS with a backdoor how would it even help with this case? The can't install the new version anyway, so surely this is all irrelevant?
 
As a megacorp, I've always found it rather unbelievable that Apple doesn't have the ability to crack it's own keys. But if they won't decrypt this phone because they genuinely can't, wouldn't that be a better argument to the Feds?
Apple's nothing... If not very smart and clever.

I don't buy their story about not being able to get into the iPhone they created. The Apple faithful rely on Apple for their happiness and security. I understand why they're unwilling to be open minded.

Living in Apple's Walled Garden for years, they've become completely dependent on the Cupertino Co.
 
America seemed to have done alright following Judeo Christian principles since its inception, ultimately becoming a superpower and technological marvel and a trustworthy benevolent neighbor, only until recently being unraveled by the Left.

Complete Gibberish. The very fact you have mentioned Religion and Technology ( ultimately science ) in the same post negates your point. Let alone blaming anything on the 'Left' as you put it.
 
Even if Apple did create a version of iOS with a backdoor how would it even help with this case? The can't install the new version anyway, so surely this is all irrelevant?

1. Apple has already provided the iCloud backups of this phone. However the backups stop about 6 weeks prior to the San Bernardino attack. During those 6 weeks, which is a crucial time period, the shooters phone could have texts, emails, pictures, or other information relevant to the attack, who helped them, logistical planning, and how they were funded.

2. My understanding is that any iOS update to the firmware can be installed without the passcode. That's what the FBI is asking Apple to do with this particular phone and to include a feature that bypasses the 10-try limit on the main password.
 
I am still with the FBI in this case. Apple should have just quietly helped on their own terms meaning the FBI gets the data but never the iOS version that unlocks the phone.

Apple does what's best for Apple. Somewhat fair enough.

Thankfully you are not deciding anything here. People like you scare me.
 
Even if Apple did create a version of iOS with a backdoor how would it even help with this case? The can't install the new version anyway, so surely this is all irrelevant?
That's what I thought, but perhaps they do have a way of forcing updates even if they've never actually done so. Otherwise I would think that they'd be able to tell the FBI they'd love to help, but they designed the system such that they can't do anything.
 
I am still with the FBI in this case. Apple should have just quietly helped on their own terms meaning the FBI gets the data but never the iOS version that unlocks the phone.

Apple does what's best for Apple. Somewhat fair enough.
Apple has helped them out where they were able to when the FBI made lawful requests for data. But compelling Apple to compromise its platform's security is another matter.
 
if the FBI wants the phone unlocked why not this take it too the shooter in jailed and have then put in his passcode and there easy and done with
 
Nice that you can sit back and not have an opinion on this. Do you consider the privacy vs. security issue to be unimportant?
Gotta love people that derive a conclusion from a picture. Good job on the assumptions! Despite what you think, this entire ordeal is as entertaining as it is important to our security and privacy. It's entertaining in that the FBI is making themselves look like completely inept tools.
 
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