Apple-FBI

Rumors have suggested the FBI employed Israeli mobile forensics firm Cellebrite to hack into the iPhone 5c used by San Bernardino shooter Syed Farook, but new information from The Washington Post suggests it was instead done with the help of "professional hackers" at least one of which is a "gray hat" researcher that sells flaws to governments, black market groups, or companies that create...

A draft of an encryption bill created by Senate Intelligence Committee leaders Richard Burr and Dianne Feinstein was released last night, revealing the scope of the legislation that would require technology companies to decrypt data and share it in an "intelligible format" when served with a legal order. The Compliance with Court Orders Act of 2016, a copy of which was shared by Re/code,...

The U.S. Justice Department will continue pushing for a court order forcing Apple to help investigators unlock the iPhone 5s belonging to Brooklyn drug dealer Jun Feng, as part of a case that dates back to October 2015, according to The Wall Street Journal.“The government’s application is not moot, and the government continues to require Apple’s assistance in accessing the data that it is...

A review of Apple's track record of handling government data requests claims that the company received and complied with its first court order to unlock an iPhone in 2008. According to a Wall Street Journal piece published yesterday, the first court order came from investigators involved in the prosecution of child sex offenders Amanda and Christopher Jansen, a married couple from Watertown,...

After disclosing its method of accessing the iPhone 5c of San Bernardino shooter Syed Farook to a few U.S. Senators, the FBI today released a new sliver of information regarding the highly secretive invasive steps the organization has taken to get into the iPhone in question. FBI director James Comey gave a few hints about "a tool" from a private party that it used to gain access to Farook's...

The FBI has begun telling some U.S. Senators how it accessed the data on San Bernardino shooter Syed Farook's iPhone 5c, according to The National Journal (via CNET). Previously, the FBI has been coy on how it accessed the data on the phone and hasn't communicated the exploit used to Apple. California Senator Diane Feinstein, the vice chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence,...

The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation is still working on analyzing the information found on the iPhone of San Bernardino Shooter Syed Farook, reports The Wall Street Journal. FBI general counsel James Baker shared news on the iPhone earlier today at the International Association of Privacy Professionals conference, where he said it's too early to tell if the data on the device is...

The FBI has agreed to help an Arkansas prosecutor unlock an iPhone and iPod that belong to two teenagers accused of killing a couple, reports the Associated Press. The move comes days after the FBI announced that it had unlocked the San Bernardino shooter's iPhone. Faulkner County Prosecuting Attorney Cody Hiland said the FBI agreed to the request from his office and the Conway Police...

Apple's ongoing fight with the U.S. government over an order that would require the company to unlock the iPhone 5c used by San Bernardino shooter Syed Farook has come to an end, after the Justice Department today announced plans to drop its case against Apple. In a motion asking the court to vacate the original order, prosecutors said the FBI has been able to access the data stored on the...

Israeli mobile software developer Cellebrite is helping the FBI in its attempt to unlock the iPhone at the center of the San Bernardino shooter investigation. That's according to a story filed by Reuters this morning, based on a report in Wednesday's copy of Israeli daily newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth. If the software company succeeds then the FBI will no longer need the help of Apple, the...

The United States Justice Department today asked the court overseeing its ongoing iPhone unlocking battle with Apple to postpone a hearing scheduled to take place on Tuesday, March 22, reports Politico. The DoJ says new leads have been discovered that could provide it with a way to unlock the iPhone 5c used by San Bernardino shooter Syed Farook without involving Apple. "On Sunday, March 20,...

Ahead of Apple's court date with the Federal Bureau of Investigation tomorrow, Bloomberg has taken a dive into the company's history with the FBI to chart the buildup to the heated battle over security and encryption on smartphones. The timeline begins with Apple's introduction of iOS 8 in June of 2014, with Apple subsequently providing the FBI early access so the law enforcement agency "could...

Should the FBI win its ongoing legal battle with Apple, resulting in the Cupertino company being ordered to unlock the iPhone 5c used by San Bernardino shooter Syed Farook, some Apple engineers may decide not to cooperate with law enforcement. Apple employees who might be called on to help the FBI are already considering their actions should Apple lose the case, reports The New York Times,...

Apple CEO Tim Cook will be featured on the cover of the March 28th edition of TIME Magazine in relation to the ongoing Apple-FBI debate over unlocking an iPhone belonging to deceased San Bernardino shooter Syed Farook. The print edition includes a lengthy interview with Cook, who talked mostly about widely known background details pertaining to the case, just days before Apple and the FBI are...

Apple is working to further harden iCloud security so that even it won't be able to access user information stored on its data servers, The Wall Street Journal has reported. According to yesterday's report, which cites "people familiar with the matter", Apple executives are actively considering how to bolster iCloud encryption without inconveniencing users. Currently, encrypted data kept on ...

Following the U.S. government's filing last week once again urging the court to compel Apple to assist the FBI in unlocking the iPhone of San Bernardino shooter Syed Farook, a document Apple general counsel Bruce Sewell called a "cheap shot," Apple today filed its response arguing that the government's reliance on the All Writs Act dating back to 1789 as justification for the request is an...

Last Week Tonight host John Oliver tackled Apple and the FBI's duel over encryption as the main segment on his show last night. He played out cases for both sides before siding with Apple and creating a comical ad for the Cupertino company in its signature style explaining why encryption is important. Oliver starts the segment by explaining what encryption is, what it protects and how it can ...

United States President Barack Obama today spoke with Texas Tribune editor Evan Smith at South by Southwest (SXSW), where he indirectly addressed Apple's dispute with the FBI. While Obama said he could not comment specifically on the ongoing encryption battle between the two, he spoke on larger issues of privacy and security. Obama cautioned against taking an "absolutist" view on encryption...

With the court date for the iPhone unlocking case between Apple and the FBI just over a week away, United States Attorney General Loretta Lynch decided to speak on the issue during an episode of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert last night (via TechCrunch). After Colbert asked about her likely stance on the topic, Lynch said that she has "had a number of great conversations with Tim Cook on...

Prosecutors representing the United States government today filed another document (via The Verge) to support the motion to compel Apple to unlock the iPhone used by San Bernardino shooter Syed Farook, calling the original order a "modest" request that would not result in a universal "master key" and dismissing many of Apple's legal arguments. The document says Apple's rhetoric is false and...