Manhattan District Attorney Calls iPhone Encryption 'An Issue of Public Safety'

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Posted January 7, 2015 at 8:18pm by iClarified · 10707 views

With iOS 8, Apple rolled out many security and privacy enhancements. One of the biggest security features included encryption of your personal data such as photos, messages, emails, call history and more. On the new operating system, Apple cannot decrypt or extract any of the information on your device, even if it was required to do so.

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance sees these new security and privacy features as "an issue of public safety, " and believes Apple should be required to decrypt the information on the phone.

“It’s developed into a sort of high-stakes game,” Vance said. “They’ve eliminated accessibility in order to market the product. Now that means we have to figure out how to solve a problem that we didn’t create.”

“This is an issue of public safety,” Vance said. “The companies made a conscious decision -- which they marketed -- to make these devices inaccessible. Now it’s our job to figure out how we can do our job in that environment.”

Vance said he was "going rouge" by discussing the subject at a conference hosted by the FBI, but he has been in discussions with lawmakers on crafting legislation to require companies to hand over data. FBI director James Comey also has previously stated he was very concerned with the steps Apple and Google are taking to strengthen privacy on mobile devices; however, security experts believe the claims from law enforcement are nonsense.

"There's no evidence that encryption hampers criminal investigations in any serious way. In 2013, encryption foiled the police nine times, up from four in 2012—and the investigations proceeded in some other way," cryptographer Bruce Schneier responded.

Do you agree with law enforcement officials, or think privacy and security are equally important?

Read More via Daily Dot

Manhattan District Attorney Calls iPhone Encryption 'An Issue of Public Safety'

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thejett - January 8, 2015 at 4:51pm

I guess I just don't understand what crimes people are committing where the evidence is most easily or only available on their phone? It would seem that minuscule crimes not worth prosecuting would have evidence on a phone (shoplifting, speeding, texting while driving, etc). The larger crimes like murder, rape - probably wouldn't have much evidence on a phone - or at least the majority of evidence would be physical and not digital. It seems much more like the moves of a censored country ensuring you are living within the confines of censorship.

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pilot - January 8, 2015 at 6:13am

Only in OBAMERICA!!!!

PNHUNTER - January 8, 2015 at 2:21am

It reminds me of one time I got pulled over because ONE OF TWO light bulbs was burnt out on my REAR LICENSE PLATE and I went through a full inspection because my car was kinda beat up, but at the end I just got the $10 fix up ticket...although I had to go to court and waste a whole day of work to show the judge I fixed the little light. SO 4UCK DA POLICE!!!

Dang The Hung - January 7, 2015 at 11:06pm

Your government out of control. Time to send these jackbooted thugs packing. The constitution means nothing to these statists.

NoGoodNick - January 7, 2015 at 10:19pm

The DA is used to 'easy arrests', where they farm out thousands of fishing expeditions, looking for anything at all incrimidating they can charge someone with. Everyone is guilty of something, and if you dig, you can convict them of virtually anything, even if they didn't realize they did anything wrong. It's time for law enforcement to get up off of their fat asses and do their jobs. They need to find criminals, not people who accidentally do the wrong thing, or the criminals SO stupid you could catch them with your eyes shut. Complaining that Apple is helping 'criminals' is telling the world you're incompatent and you need corporate bailouts to do your basic job. The police ARE the enemy. They're shooting innocent civilians, they're arresting small time criminals (instead of the people raking in the big bucks), and they're making their reputations charging people who don't realize their guilty of anything (and won't refuse a search request). Until Apple and the other electronic companies stop refusing to do their job for them, we'll ALL suffer!

Araab - January 7, 2015 at 9:27pm

FUK the DA

KyleB - January 7, 2015 at 8:43pm

Um, how did we solve crimes pre-iPhone? You lazy, constitution hating, privacy infringing excuse for law enforcement!

SimonSays - January 7, 2015 at 8:30pm

All this says is that they are lazy asses that want all the evidence handed to them instead of them doing their jobs. Investigator used to mean a person who investigates. I guess now it means a person looking for a handout of evidence.