The FBI seems to be worried about Apple and Google’s smartphones that can’t be searched. According to James Comey, the Federal Bureau of Investigation director, the agency is “concerned” over Apple and Google marketing smartphones as they cannot be searched by law enforcement. This would force the FBI to investigate criminals like the old days.
James Comey claimed that both Apple and Google are marketing their products expressly to allow people to place themselves beyond the law. The FBI confirmed that the bureau has contacted both companies to find out “what they’re thinking and why they think it makes sense”.
It is weird that the FBI can’t grasp that the phone makers have moved to encryption following the NSA leaker Edward Snowden’s revelations about mass surveillance from the National Security Agency. For example, Apple announced the enhanced encryption for its new iOS 8, saying that the new operating system makes it impossible for the company to decrypt a locked device – even under the law enforcement request.
Android’s encryption was optional, but it actually works in a similar manner. Google has also announced that in its upcoming Android L release, the encryption will be enabled by default. However, it is clear that the real ability for the tech giants to keep the spooks out of communication is rather limited. Google and Apple store data on the cloud, and the information can be obtained using a court order. The security experts point out that in most cases, encryption can only protect users from individuals trying to snoop in on a stolen or resold device, but the Federal Bureau of Investigation can easily get a warrant for data on anyone’s phone or for data stored in the cloud connected to anyone’s account.
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