Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

FBI Successfully Unlocks iPhone 11 Pro in Ohio, Casting Doubt on Claims it Needs Apple's Help in Florida Mass Shooter Case

One of the (admittedly smaller) reasons I upgraded to an iPhone 11 Pro from an iPhone 7 was the increase in security presented by its newer hardware. So I'm mostly just concerned that this company has been able to find a way to defeat the protections on the latest iPhone and so quickly after it launched if this report is to be believed.
 
  • Like
Reactions: xpxp2002 and GalileoSeven
MacRumors said:



New questions have been raised about the FBI's latest request that Apple break its iPhone encryption, after Forbes uncovered a search warrant strongly indicating that federal agents already have tools that can access data on Apple's latest iPhone models.

graykey1.jpg

The report says that FBI investigators in Ohio recently used the GrayKey hardware box to unlock an iPhone 11 Pro Max. The iPhone belonged to Baris Ali Koch, who was accused of helping his convicted brother flee the country by providing him with his own ID documents and lying to the police. He has now entered a plea agreement and is awaiting sentencing.

Koch's lawyer confirmed to Forbes that the iPhone was locked with a passcode when it got in the hands of the FBI and that the code was never revealed to law enforcement, nor was the defendant forced to use his face to unlock the phone via Face ID.

Created by a company named Grayshift, GrayKey is a portable gray box that has previously been used by law enforcement to crack the passcode on iPhones. Complete details on how the latest GrayKey works are not known, although Apple continually works to fix the kinds of exploits used by such devices.

Ohio FBI search warrant​

Forbes has previously revealed a GrayKey brochure that showed it worked on older devices, and the two iPhones acquired by the FBI in the most recent Pensacola case are an iPhone 5 and an iPhone 7, which strongly suggests that investigators are already capable of unlocking them.

President Donald Trump and Attorney General William Barr have also weighed in on the latest iPhone encryption stalemate between Apple and the FBI, with both urging the tech giant to assist in unlocking the iPhones used by the Pensacola shooter.

Justice department officials claim to need access to the iPhones to see messages from encrypted apps like Signal or WhatsApp to find out if the shooter discussed his plans or had help. Apple says it has already provided law enforcement officials with information from the shooter's iCloud account, which amounts to all the data in its possession.

Statements by Apple suggest it is gearing up for a battle similar to the one it faced in 2016 in the San Bernardino shooter case, indicating the company has no plans to create a backdoor in its software, regardless of the U.S. government's motives. Apple has previously said that doing so would create "new and dangerous weaknesses" and that weakening security "makes no sense."

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Article Link: FBI Successfully Unlocks iPhone 11 Pro in Ohio, Casting Doubt on Claims it Needs Apple's Help in Florida Mass Shooter Case
Click to expand...
Great news!
 
  • Like
Reactions: BoneHead001
martyjmclean said:
This is why you should keep the USB Accessories settings off.
Click to expand...
Right? If you never use them, turn it off
[automerge]1579180701[/automerge]
GalileoSeven said:
Agreed. Grayshift as an Apple surrogate (that allows them to comply with the Feds, yet maintain plausible deniability publicly) makes a lot of sense.
Click to expand...
This does make sense. But then it means Apple is full of (rhymes with spit).
 
  • Like
Reactions: Peza19 and GalileoSeven
Glockworkorange said:
Right? If you never use them, turn it off
Click to expand...

My understanding is that when ‘disabled’ the USB port remains active for accessory purposes so long as no more than one hour has passed between the last unlock and the phone being plugged in. If that hour has passed before plugging the device in, then the user is prompted to unlock.
 
Mr.Bigglesworth said:
A lot of people want Apple to tighten up security.

okay. Let some catastrophe happen to you or your family done by some POS dirt bag and the answer to said calamity is sitting inside their iPhone. You would be rioting for Apple to give the fbi a backdoor access to that phone, so stop it. It’s not a problem because it’s not happening to you.
Click to expand...


How about think about this with a few steps ahead? Most people today treat their iPhones almost like an extension of the brain. No one can read minds, similarly, they assume iPhones would be hard to read so they keep sensitive info on their phone without worry. Suddenly making iPhones easy to access would create a temporary advantage for the FBI until all the bad people pick up on this and start wiping their devices which will make this “easy access” useless in 1 or 2 years.

Essentially, you want to sacrifice permanent security for a temporary advantage. That is, the temporary advantage assumes there are any “answers” on this iPhone.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
  • Like
Reactions: MacPrince, HeadphoneAddict, Stryder541 and 5 others
Mr.Bigglesworth said:
A lot of people want Apple to tighten up security.

okay. Let some catastrophe happen to you or your family done by some POS dirt bag and the answer to said calamity is sitting inside their iPhone. You would be rioting for Apple to give the fbi a backdoor access to that phone, so stop it. It’s not a problem because it’s not happening to you.
Click to expand...

Not everyone is selfish, not everyone is ignorant and drink the authorities kool aid, not everyone is so entitled he thinks he knows how other people would behave because he needs to believe everyone is as selfish as himself.

Plus, the chances I could find myself in a situation where I could be helped if the authorities have a backdoor to my phone are incredibly slim. The chances my life, financially or otherwise, could be heavily disrupted because hackers, thieves, scammers and so on can use the same backdoor are incredibly big, and not being an irrational person driven by ignorance and fear I tend to act rationally, I don’t know you.

Plus, you are saying what are you saying under an article that seems to show the authorities that should protect you are flat out lying on the topic so... good luck with life.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
  • Like
Reactions: Victor Mortimer, MacPrince, Mr. Heckles and 6 others
Mr.Bigglesworth said:
A lot of people want Apple to tighten up security.

okay. Let some catastrophe happen to you or your family done by some POS dirt bag and the answer to said calamity is sitting inside their iPhone. You would be rioting for Apple to give the fbi a backdoor access to that phone, so stop it. It’s not a problem because it’s not happening to you.
Click to expand...

Every time this argument comes up, my reply is: Let some catastrophe happen to you or your family done by some POS dirt bag and the answer to said calamity is sitting inside their iPhone. I would _not_ be rioting for Apple to give the FBI a backdoor.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
  • Like
Reactions: MrSweaters and TheWatchfulOne
As a law enforcement officer and lover of privacy and technology, the government cannot be trusted with the keys to people's devices. One of the great benefits of Apple is their dedication to improving privacy and device security. If Apple opens one door for the FBI, the method will be open for other doors to be opened and that would be catastrophic for personal security.

I have run into dead ends in cases where I have a warrant for a device but cannot get past encryption. That's just the name of the game. You can't win them all.
 
  • Like
  • Love
Reactions: Victor Mortimer, MacPrince, Mr. Heckles and 14 others
Jim Lahey said:
My understanding is that when ‘disabled’ the USB port remains active for accessory purposes so long as no more than one hour has passed between the last unlock and the phone being plugged in. If that hour has passed before plugging the device in, then the user is prompted to unlock.
Click to expand...
If that's correct (not doubting you), then it's not super helpful.
 
diipii said:
Grow up and help the powers of law and order
Click to expand...
That pesky Bill of Rights keeps getting in the way. You know, stuff like the 5th Amendment, can't be forced to testify against yourself (and therefore can't be forced to give up your passcode).

You have nothing to hide right? You shouldn't have any problem with me stopping by unannounced to search your house then. Just to make sure you're not doing anything illegal.

Oh, and you're going to need to change your signature. It is my business what Apple devices you have.
 
  • Like
  • Love
  • Haha
Reactions: Victor Mortimer, MacPrince, ssspinball and 6 others
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back