Tim Cook Hits Back At The FBI, Comparing iPhone Cracking To Cancer

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Apple is currently knee deep in a dispute with the FBI over an investigation that requires the company to essentially allow the FBI through the back door of their devices. At the forefront of that dispute has been Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook. In a recent interview with ABC News, Tim Cook has now hit back at the FBI for their insistence, comparing iPhone cracking to the software equivalent of cancer.

The news comes as the U.S. government has filed persistent requests for Apple to create a piece of software that would allow the FBI to essentially unlock an iPhone used by one of the shooters during the recent San Bernardino shooting. During the interview, Cook has stated that Apple believes the piece of software the FBI is requesting to be the “software equivalent of cancer.” For a company that has always put security at the front of what they do, Tim Cook clearly believes that to be a bad path to head down.

Syed Farook, along with his wife, Tashfeen Malik, killed 14 people and injured a further 22 during a training session and party back in December. Since then, the FBI has been mounting a case against the pair but stumbled upon a problem with Malik’s password protected iPhone. The FBI made attempts to crack the password of the device but have failed because of the iPhone’s built in software that resets the aforementioned password after 10 attempts and renders the device inaccessible. In comparison with devices from other mobile manufacturers, Apple’s security is largely considered to be some of the most heavily guarded available.

Watch David Muir’s full interview with Apple CEO Tim Cook on the iPhone privacy debate: https://t.co/6JzroXqU8n pic.twitter.com/EidRhpSBTg

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Last week, a federal judge with the Justice Department told Apple that the company must assist law enforcement. However, the company has since refused and stated that it will fight the decision, which Apple see as a violation of civil liberties. Tim Cook has admitted the situation to be “complex” but is reluctant to compromise the security of millions of users of Apple devices across the world for the sake bringing the San Bernardino shooters to justice.

Cook had the following to say in his aforementioned interview with ABC.

“If a court can ask us to write this piece of software, think about what else they could ask us to write – maybe it’s an operating system for surveillance, maybe the ability for the law enforcement to turn on the camera. I don’t know where this stops. But I do know that this is not what should be happening in this country.”

Apple has been persistent in stating that the only way to break into Syed Farook’s iPhone would be to create a so-called “back door” into their own operating system, which would allow the FBI and other law enforcement agencies to gain access if and when they need it. However, Tim Cook fears that doing this would leave the FBI free to violate the civil liberties of their customers at any time it wished.

That being said, FBI Director James Comey stated that Apple has the technical know-how in order to gain access to this particular iOS device without the need to create the aforementioned back door. This comes as the American public appear to be increasingly divided over the issue. According to polls by the Pew Research Center, the majority of Americans support the FBI’s request to gain access to the device belonging to a shooter. However, 55 percent of respondents were also very concerned that the FBI could use a potential back door to spy on iPhone users.

We don’t expect this case between Apple and the FBI to be over anytime soon. Plus, Tim Cook providing his opinion clearly shows the gravitas of the situation for Apple.

[Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images]