The high-profile legal standoff between Apple and the FBI recently came to an end when the government unlocked a terrorist’s iPhone without Apple’s assistance, but new data confirms that this single showdown is just one of dozens of cases where the federal government has successfully used a more than 225-year-old law to compel Apple or Google to aid authorities in bypassing smartphone security measures. [More]
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After Unlocking iPhone On Its Own, Government Drops Effort To Compel Apple’s Help
By 3.28.16
Last week, it was reported that the FBI had figured out how to unlock the iPhone belonging to one of the shooters who killed 14 people in San Bernardino, CA, on Dec. 2, 2015. Now, it’s official, as the government has dropped its attempt to compel Apple to aid the FBI in bypassing the device’s security — but this is just the first of likely many fights over this issue. [More]
FBI: Actually Maybe We Don’t Need Apple To Unlock Their Phone After All
By 3.22.16
Apple and the FBI have been fighting very publicly for the last month about national security, iPhones, and the intersection of privacy and encryption with those things. Their legal battle was supposed to be heard in court in California this afternoon — except the FBI has asked for a delay, saying that actually, maybe they don’t need Apple to create a backdoor to get what they want after all. [More]
Apple CEO Tim Cook: Nation Needs To Decide How Much Power Government Has Over Data, Privacy
By 3.21.16
Apple CEO Tim Cook used today’s press event for the new iPhone to once again make his case against court orders trying compel Apple to aid law enforcement in unlocking iPhones belonging to criminal suspects. [More]
Apple Engineers Might Resist Court Order To Weaken iPhone Encryption
By 3.18.16
A federal court in California is currently weighing whether or not Apple could be compelled to aid the FBI in unlocking an iPhone that belonged to one of the terrorists behind the Dec. 2, 2015 shootings in San Bernardino, CA. But even if the court rules that Apple must assist the government in opening the device, some engineers at the company are reportedly considering resistance. [More]
FBI To Carmakers, Owners: Your Vehicles Are “Increasingly Vulnerable” To Hackings
By 3.18.16
Nearly a year after the very public hacking of a Jeep that eventually led to the recall of more than 1.4 million Fiat Chrysler vehicles, federal law enforcement and vehicles safety officials are warning carmakers and owners that their vehicles are “increasingly vulnerable” to hackings. [More]
Facebook’s WhatsApp May Be Next In Law Enforcement’s Privacy Battle
By 3.14.16
The federal government’s courtroom war with Apple over iPhone encryption may be grabbing all the headlines, but a number of tech companies offer devices, apps, and messaging services with privacy settings that frustrate police investigations. And according to a new report, the Facebook-owned WhatsApp instant messaging app could be the next to face a legal challenge from the feds. [More]
John Oliver Rewrites Apple Ads To Make Them More Honest About Encryption
By 3.14.16
On Sunday’s Last Week Tonight, host John Oliver looked at length at the ongoing, complicated legal battle between Apple and the FBI, which has asked a court to compel the tech company to rewrite its software to allow authorities to search crime suspects’ locked iPhones. And while Oliver ultimately came down in defense of Apple’s position in the matter, he also believes the company could be more direct about presenting the reality of the situation. [More]
Apple Accuses DOJ Of “Smear” Campaign In Fight Over Unlocking Shooter’s iPhone
By 3.11.16
The legal tug-of-war over whether or not Apple can be forced to unlock a secure iPhone continued last night, with the U.S. Justice Department filing a sharp rebuke to Apple’s claims that it can’t legally be compelled to rewrite its software, and with Apple responding by accusing federal prosecutors of operating a “smear” campaign through the court system. [More]
Former Brink’s Worker Accused Of Stealing $200,000 In Quarters
By 3.8.16
When you think of the company Brink’s, you probably imagine their employees protecting money from bank robbers, bad guys, and other ne’er-do-wells. But according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, one former Brink’s Company employee is on the other side of the equation, after allegedly stealing almost $200,000 worth of quarters while on the job. [More]
Dozens Of Tech Experts Ask Court To Not Force Apple To Unlock iPhone
By 3.3.16
The day after Apple filed its formal objection to a Feb. 16 court order compelling the company to assist the FBI in unlocking an iPhone that belonged to one of the terrorists who killed 14 people last December in California, a group of nearly four dozen tech industry experts have asked the court to rethink its decision. [More]
Apple “Formally Objects” To Court Order To Unlock San Bernardino Shooter’s iPhone
By 3.2.16
Hours after Apple and the FBI faced off before a Congressional panel on the matters of encryption, privacy, and law enforcement, the company officially filed its objection to a court order directing it to assist the FBI in unlocking an iPhone that belonged to one of the terrorists who killed 14 people in San Bernardino, CA, on Dec. 2, 2015. [More]
Apple, FBI Testify About Encryption And Privacy In Congressional Hearing
By 3.1.16
The angriest battle in tech right now is taking place between Apple and the FBI. Two weeks in to a very public fight, the argument is only heating up. Today, the debate went over to Capitol Hill. [More]
Apple Working On iPhone That Even It Wouldn’t Be Able To Hack
By 2.25.16
While Apple and federal law enforcement officials argue over whether or not the company should aid in the hacking of a terrorist’s locked iPhone, the company has reportedly begun work on a version of the device that even its creators would not be able to unlock. [More]
Apple Suggests New Commission Be Formed To Resolve FBI Privacy Standoff
By 2.22.16
Most folks don’t get to say “no” to the FBI. But Apple did just that last week, when they very publicly took a stand and, in an open letter to consumers, refused to create new code that could allow the feds to hack into an iPhone that belonged to one of the San Bernardino shooters. The spat has only deepened over the last few days, and brought issues of consumer privacy and encryption straight into mainstream conversation. [More]
Apple To FBI: Keep Your Hands Off Our iPhone Encryption
By 2.17.16
One of the biggest stories in tech these days has its beginning in tragedy: the mass shooting in San Bernardino late last year. The FBI’s investigation includes the iPhone 5C one of the shooters used, but they can’t access all the data on it because of the phone’s built-in encryption. Two months in to the investigation, the feds have ordered Apple to alter the phone so that law enforcement can crack it with brute force password attacks. However, in an unusually bold move for business, Apple’s answer to the FBI is a big fat “no.” [More]
Time Warner Cable Warns 320,000 Customers Their Email & Passwords May Have Been Breached
By 1.7.16
Hundreds of thousands of Time Warner Cable customers received alerts this week telling them to change their email passwords after law enforcement officials notified TWC that hackers may have gotten their hands on this sensitive information.
[More]
FBI Investigating Business Model Of DraftKings, FanDuel
By 10.15.15
Daily fantasy sports sites like DraftKings and FanDuel operate under a “games of skill” exemption to a federal law that prohibits banks from transferring money to most online gambling operations. But the Department of Justice is reportedly taking a closer look at how these companies actually work to see if their business models cross a legal line. [More]
