Showdown: Justice Department Escalates Against Apple

The US Justice Department escalated its standoff with Apple today, filing a motion to compel Apple to create software that would facilitate the Federal Government’s breaking the encryption of an iPhone in the possession of one of the San Bernardino shooters. Apple has argued that no one could depend on being secure from the prying eyes of government should it comply with the Federal government’s orders. Wrote Apple CEO Tim Cook, in a letter to customers this week, “in the wrong hands, this software – which does not exist today – would have the potential to unlock any iPhone in someone’s physical possession.”

The Justice Department’s counterargument appears to be that this is a special case and they can be trusted to never use this “key” to our iPhones again. But ironically, this heightened encryption feature was incorporated into iPhones in response to revelations by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden that the federal government had been illegally spying on American citizens. Apparently we are supposed to trust them this time.

In its filing today, the Justice Department (DoJ) ridiculed Apple’s concerns that being compelled by the government to create software to hack its own products would set a horrible precedent in a United States that still has a Fourth Amendment. Apple’s objections were not at all based on principle, the DoJ sneered, but rather “Apple’s current refusal to comply with the court’s order, despite the technical feasibility of doing so, instead appears to be based on its concern for its business model and public brand marketing strategy.”

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