Epic Battles: David vs. Goliath, Superman vs. Batman, Yankees vs. Red Sox……Apple vs. FBI?

Posted in General Law Firm on February 26, 2016

Is it odd that one of the trending news stories right now is the battle between this country’s top investigative agency, the FBI, and the world’s leading tech-supergiant, Apple? The FBI is the country’s top agency dedicated to crime prevention and law enforcement and targets spies, terrorists, hackers, pedophiles, mobsters, gang leaders and serial killers. Apple isn’t any of these things but is such a huge technology supergiant that when you google “Apple”, it shows up in the search results before the original apple, the fruit. So what is the story?

The FBI thinks that Apple holds the key to Pandora’s Box and if Apple would just cooperate then the FBI could capture terrorists. Apple thinks that if it complies with orders to build a backdoor around its own encryption to allow FBI to reach personal data it will be an unprecedented step that threatens the security of its customers. To say that this is a difficult situation is an understatement. Both options, to build the backdoor or leave it locked, have potentially far-reaching implications.

The uncertainty that lies on the other side of a decision to force Apple to bypass security is causing pause in legal and corporate circles. On one hand, there is hesitance to support an initiative for Apple to build a backdoor to bypass encryption! it would defeat the entire purpose of encryption! The implications that could arise from unprotected personal data of millions of people floating around cyberspace could be drastic and irreversible. On the other hand, how can it be certain that the benefit of gaining access to this encrypted information would outweigh the consequences of having millions of individual’s personal information exposed?

Why are we talking about this? We are attorneys that rely on credible information to support the cause of our clients. We are constantly seeking information from parties involved in car wrecks including witnesses, videos and photos. As attorneys, we are responsible to use information disclosed in the course of legal proceedings in the most ethical manner expected of us. We may be objective observers of this battle between the state and the corporate world but we understand the repercussions it could potentially have on any personal information stored on the Apple devices of our clients. Regardless of the outcome, we will maintain our professional integrity as Attorneys and will protect our clients’ privacy while providing quality legal services.

Honest Advice. It’s what we do. LRW Law Office.

Photo Credit: Jewel Samad/Getty  cbc.ca/news