Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
U.S. Federal Law Enforcement Says It's Impossible to Wiretap iMessage Conversations
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
The government will get its way I guarantee it. Either Apple will eventually help them figure out a way to tap iMessages or the service will be discontinued. Though, I strongly suspect the former.
Any smart criminal is wise to have a secure form of communication. For example, I'm sure Al Qaeda has very sophisticated internet communication for its leaders. It doesn't take a genius to figure out how to make encrypted communication work through sms. Sure there are limitations in character count, but it can be done...
Even though I have nothing to hide, I for one welcome a partial return of our fourth amendment rights against illegal search and seizure. However it is unfortunate it takes technology to grant us this instead of government following through on it's obligations.
Yes, all of that time the government is meddling in your affairs must be so tiresome. They are just so concerned with everything you do. Life must be so hard.
You can get them with just your Apple ID, so even if they're encrypted on Apple's servers, the keys are also kept there.
I'm glad iMessage is so secure that you can't wiretap it, but don't they just need your Apple ID and password?
Saying that it was "leaked" tries to make the story more believable. Anyone that believes anything they hear or read from the media or the internet is a fool.
For me, I'd rather the government know beforehand if there was to be a terrorist attack in my town or city so they have a chance to thwart it. This isn't such a hypothetical issue, either, as there have been terrorist attacks thwarted thanks to intelligence services.
The full article on CNET mentions that they can subpoena Apple for their iMessage server data. Not sure what that data is - perhaps Apple archives iMessages? That would be a huge amount of stuff to keep archived.
You have an amazingly naieve world view
----------
I will bite... How is the us government trying to bankrupt the mail system? The system they spun off many years ago to find and operate under its own power?
Wiretaps are awarded by judges when they are prevented with evidence that a potential crime is taking place and such a wiretap would allow for the further collection of wiretaps.
Nothing wrong with wiretaps and how they work. The system works pretty well. The problem is with things like national security letters can demand data on a person without a warrant. A wire tap is essentially just a warrant to listen in on phone calls of people suspected of committing crimes.
Like I said that system works fairly well. The problems are the activities where information can be gained without the approval of a judge.
The first time one of these taps was used in court would be the last time it would work for them.
Of course Verizon didn't have the messages if they didn't go over their messaging protocol. iMessage isn't a a cellular SMS message but a simplified chat service, one the carriers have no access to. The same way you shouldn't expect to get a copy of my mail if you wiretap my landline.
i believe it. there's a reason why apple computers dont get viruses
when you have more cash than the goverment, yea you can do anything
when you have more cash than the goverment, yea you can do anything
This does not strengthen your argument.
Rendition?!? Are you effing with me? What the H are you up to if you're worried about rendition?
I thought the whole point of being a political dissident was to let the government know you had grievances. Right? How else will you get them to change? Unless you're planning on simply overthrowing the government, in which case I hope they do find out about you.
Be thankful that you live in a country where you can openly speculate about the awful things that you think your government is up to, because there are too many people in this world that don't get that break. The Chinese must have a much better government than the U.S., because there are far more Americans complaining about how they're being trampled than there are Chinese citizens.
Seriously, the Genie that is modern society enables governments (all governments) to keep a pretty close eye on almost everything that we do and it can't be put back in the bottle. The goal is to have a government that uses that power within a framework called the Rule of Law and Due Process.
This whole "leak" is a setup to sucker the bad guys into using iMessage
Deliberately leaking misinformation to fool the bad guys is the oldest trick in the book. They must think the criminals they're after are idiots.
"Hey, the feds can't track us on iMessage! Let's run down and buy some Apple gear so we can create a record of our criminal activity that can be used against us in court! Woo hoo!"
Deliberately leaking misinformation to fool the bad guys is the oldest trick in the book. They must think the criminals they're after are idiots.
"Hey, the feds can't track us on iMessage! Let's run down and buy some Apple gear so we can create a record of our criminal activity that can be used against us in court! Woo hoo!"