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As someone who works closely in the field of Apple security issues, I strongly agree with your first statement--the narrative on this topic is often weirdly pro
by saurik 6y ago
As someone who works closely in the field of Apple security issues, I strongly agree with your first statement--the narrative on this topic is often weirdly pro-Apple as this device effectively already had a backdoor that anyone could have used to get into it with nothing more than Apple's firmware signing key (an issue which was only addressed in later versions of this device)... Apple claims that the key wouldn't have been useful to the FBI without their expertise to help, but I can attest that that is BS as forensics people in the jailbreak community had maintained alternative ssh-only firmwares that provided the exact required PIN-code brute forcing tooling for years--but the rest of your comment (the chosen defense of your thesis) is sadly much weaker than it thereby could be because the FBI actually covered why iCloud Backup wasn't helpful in their court filings: if nothing else (there is a bunch of explanation of why a "forced" backup wasn't possible that is maybe "extraneous"), the device hadn't been backed up for months before the incident (with automatic backups turned off) and there is data they wanted (if it had been there) which is not part of a backup (specifically various caches).
- sneak 6y agoI was speaking in general more than about this specific device. That's the mechanism of this narrative: Even the FBI couldn't get into the San Bernadino shooter's phone, so you're safe and secure if you buy an Apple device. This is false, due to iCloud Backup being on by default (and its insecurity being specifically and intentionally preserved by Apple, at the behest of the FBI, willingly and without legal compulsion). Whether or not they got into the specific phone (or backup data) possessed by the San Bernadino shooter is irrelevant: that prosecution has almost nothing to do with the contents of their telephone(s). The narrative that is being pushed in the media, as a result of all of this, is that Apple devices are safe and secure from government snooping, even with a warrant. We know this to be false, and more people should know this to be false. It's even false without a warrant, as all iCloud Backup data is subject to FISA/PRISM at any time, and this comprises the vast majority of the data stored on all iPhones in the world, no probable cause needed. The whole thing is an explicit manipulation of the media, undertaken Apple and the FBI in concert, to protect Apple's brand image. It appears to be working.