Apple opposes court order to create backdoor program to iPhones

Apple has openly opposed a judge's order that requests the technology company create "a backdoor to the iPhone" that will allow the FBI the ability to circumvent the phone's key security features.

"We oppose this order, which has implications far beyond the legal case at hand."

The main issue that Apple has with this, besides the fact that they call the directive "an overreach by the U.S. government," is that this "backdoor" could be taken advantage of by malicious hackers, making every iPhone user's information accessible to be stolen.

Apple likens the FBI's request to creating a "master key" to the iPhone, that will be obtainable by anyone with enough time on their hands. The directive to create this backdoor program and upload it to the iPhone was spurred by the San Bernardino shooting in December.

Since then Apple has complied with the FBI, handing over every bit of information that the FBI requested with warrants and subpoenas, but Apple will not comply with putting a backdoor on every iPhone.

Here is an excerpt from the open letter, written by Apple CEO:

Rather than asking for legislative action through Congress, the FBI is proposing an unprecedented use of the All Writs Act of 1789 to justify an expansion of its authority.

The government would have us remove security features and add new capabilities to the operating system, allowing a passcode to be input electronically. This would make it easier to unlock an iPhone by “brute force,” trying thousands or millions of combinations with the speed of a modern computer.

The implications of the government’s demands are chilling. If the government can use the All Writs Act to make it easier to unlock your iPhone, it would have the power to reach into anyone’s device to capture their data. The government could extend this breach of privacy and demand that Apple build surveillance software to intercept your messages, access your health records or financial data, track your location, or even access your phone’s microphone or camera without your knowledge.

Opposing this order is not something we take lightly. We feel we must speak up in the face of what we see as an overreach by the U.S. government.

We are challenging the FBI’s demands with the deepest respect for American democracy and a love of our country. We believe it would be in the best interest of everyone to step back and consider the implications.

While we believe the FBI’s intentions are good, it would be wrong for the government to force us to build a backdoor into our products. And ultimately, we fear that this demand would undermine the very freedoms and liberty our government is meant to protect.

Tim Cook

You can read the letter in full at Apple.com.