TECHNOLOGY AND READ
Milan , February 17, 2016 – 16:53
The US government has asked Apple to make an unprecedented step, a step which we believe has risk the security of our users. We are opposed to this injunction, since it would have much wider ramifications as compared to the case in court. These events require the launch of a public debate and we want our customers and all citizens of our country understand fully what exactly is at stake.
the need for encryption
smartphones, starting from the iPhone, have become an essential and indispensable part of our lives. People use them to store a huge amount of personal information, a photo from our private conversations, music, notes, calendar and contacts, data regarding our finances and our health, even where we have been and where we’re going. All these data must be protected from hackers and criminals who seek to have access to our data to possess and use them without our knowledge and without our consent. Customers rely on the fact that Apple and other technology companies make every effort to protect personal data, and we at Apple we are committed to the end to protect this information. Threaten the security of our personal information is equivalent to endanger our own security. This is why encryption is a crucial aspect of our job. For many years, we have used encryption to protect personal information of our clients, because we are convinced that this is the only way to ensure the security of such information. We even decided to store this data out of our own ability to access, because we believe that the content of your iPhone does not concern us in the least.
The case of San Bernardino
Like all citizens of this country, we were appalled by the barbaric attack of San Bernardino, last December. We also lament the loss of life and we demand justice for all victims. In the days following the massacre, the FBI has asked for our help, and we have been working day and night to contribute to the state’s efforts to address this horrific event. We have no sympathy for terrorists. When the FBI asked us to deliver the best of our knowledge, we have provided them. Apple has honored the subpoenas and search, even in the case of San Bernardino. We have also made available to the FBI, our engineers to provide assistance, and we have made our contribution to the various investigative hypotheses being studied by investigators. We cherish the greatest respect for the FBI professionals and we are convinced of the goodness of their intentions. Until now, we did everything that was in our power to do, within the bounds of the law. Today, however, the US government has asked us something we do not have, something that we think presents a very high risk: they asked us to install a back door to our iPhone, the so-called backdoor. To go into detail, the FBI asks us a new version of the iPhone operating system to bypass some important security features, to install it on the iPhone that was recovered during the investigation. In the wrong hands, this software – which still does not exist today – would have the ability to unlock any iPhone came across someone. The FBI uses different words to describe this instrument, but the reality is this: create a version of iOS that can circumvent security functions in this way is equivalent to installing a door secondary access. And while the government claims that its use would be limited to this single case, we have no way to ensure such control.
The threat to data security
Some argue that creating a back door for a unique iPhone is a simple and well-defined solution. But who says this ignores both the basics of digital security that the possible consequences of what the government asks us. In today’s digitized world, the “key” of an encryption system is that information that unlocks the data, and its security depends on protection from which it was surrounded. After the announcement of this information, or as soon as it is revealed the way around the code, encryption may be terminated by anyone in possession of that knowledge. The government ensures that this instrument would be used only once, on a single iPhone. But it’s not true. Once created, the technique could be reproduced in an unlimited way, of an infinite number of media. In the real world, it would be the equivalent of a master key, or primary key, able to open hundreds of thousands of locks – from banks to restaurants, shops to private homes. No one can accept this hypothesis. The government asks Apple to violate the phones of our own users and to undo decades of innovations in the field of security protection of our customers – including tens of millions of Americans – from sophisticated hackers and cyber criminals. The same engineers who have entered in the iPhone powerful encryption systems to protect our users would be forced, paradoxically, weaken those protections and to jeopardize their safety. In our history there is no precedent of an American company to which he is asked to expose their clients to the danger of cyber attacks. For years, cryptologists and national security experts have warned us of the dangers lying in wait for the flaws in the encryption systems. Consenting to the government’s request would damage the only law-abiding citizens who rely on Apple for the protection of their data. Hackers and criminals continue to encrypt, using the tools at their disposal.
A dangerous precedent
Instead of following the legislative process through Congress, the FBI intends to appeal the All Writs Act of 1789 to justify the expansion of its range. The government is asking us to cancel security features and add new ones to the operating system, allowing you to enter a code electronically. This would allow you to “force” the access to the data of an iPhone, through the selection of thousands or millions of combinations at the speed of a modern computer. The possible consequences of the US government’s request are frightening. If the government can use the All Writs Act to unlock your iPhone, then you can sneak in smartphones than anyone to capture their data. The government may extend this invasion of privacy and force Apple to create a monitoring software to intercept your messages, steal your health or financial information, find out where you are, and even capture images and sound without your knowledge. Our opposition to the government’s orders was not a choice lightly. We have a duty to raise our voice in front of what we see as an encroachment of powers by the US government. If impugniamo FBI requests, we do it with the utmost respect for American democracy and for the sake of our country. We firmly believe that it is in everyone’s interests to take a step back and think about possible repercussions. Although convinced of the goodness of the FBI’s intentions, wrong to believe that the government requires us to create a backdoor in our furniture products, because they rightly fear that this request go to threaten the very liberties that our government has the responsibility and duty to protect .
(translation by Rita Baldassarre)
February 17, 2016 (edited February 17, 2016 | 17:49)
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