> the FBI backed off, probably fearful of the PR consequences.
There was also a PR battle involved and Apple won.
Defending encryption is hard, because it is primarily a PR battle and the enemy always has the high ground. Notice how all these cases hinge on some terrible crime - terrorism, human trafficking, etc. Because the govt then gets to say "Aha, so who wants to stand up and defend terrorists!? Nobody> That's what we thought, so let's pass this new law then".
But what Apple did (and kudos to their PR team) is turn it around said it wasn't just a 1st Amendment issue, but also a practical personal safety risk issue. Not having encryption means being exposed to identity theft and fraud. It is not just something abstract but a specific and real danger that everyone either experienced or knows someone who it happened to.
It is really a great example of good PR and a good punch back in the encryption battle. It helps sometimes when a tech giant throws their weight behind this.
There was also a PR battle involved and Apple won.
Defending encryption is hard, because it is primarily a PR battle and the enemy always has the high ground. Notice how all these cases hinge on some terrible crime - terrorism, human trafficking, etc. Because the govt then gets to say "Aha, so who wants to stand up and defend terrorists!? Nobody> That's what we thought, so let's pass this new law then".
But what Apple did (and kudos to their PR team) is turn it around said it wasn't just a 1st Amendment issue, but also a practical personal safety risk issue. Not having encryption means being exposed to identity theft and fraud. It is not just something abstract but a specific and real danger that everyone either experienced or knows someone who it happened to.
Read it here: https://www.apple.com/customer-letter/
It is really a great example of good PR and a good punch back in the encryption battle. It helps sometimes when a tech giant throws their weight behind this.