14 DAY TRIAL // The US Justice Department has filed an official motion (PDF reader needed) earlier today to request Apple to develop software that could help the FBI break into an iPhone used by terrorists in the attack in San Bernardino.
And while the motion indeed calls for the company to comply with the government order, emphasizing that “it’s not above the law,” it’s also criticizing Apple and its CEO for the statements released in the last couple of days.
The feds are claiming that Apple is actually misleading the public with its comments on the government request and explains that the company does not have to build a backdoor, but only software that it could fully control.
“The order does not, as Apple’s public statement alleges, require Apple to create or provide a ‘back door’ to every iPhone,” the government’s motion explains. “It does not provide ‘hackers and criminals’ access to iPhones; it does not require Apple to ‘hack its own users’ or to ‘decrypt’ its phones; it does not give the government ‘the power to reach into anyone’s device’ without a warrant or court authorization.”
The FBI would never be in control of the software
Furthermore, the feds claim that Apple would be given the flexibility to always be in control of its software, which “would never have to come into the government’s custody.”
Eventually, the prosecutors come down to saying that Apple refuses to help them break into that iPhone because that would be bad PR and hurt the company’s business.
“Apple’s current refusal to comply with the court order’s order, despite the technical feasibility of doing so, instead appears to be based on its concern for its business model and public brand marketing strategy,” the motion reads.
And the feds are certainly right, because hacking an iPhone could actually make everyone owning an iPhone feel insecure knowing that there’s a tool that can break into their phones at any given moment. And that’s exactly what Apple has always tried to avoid and now, according to CEO Tim Cook, software that could be used to hack an iPhone does not exist. And if the company doesn’t give up, such a solution will never be created.