Manhattan DA slams Apple

[Valin]

The Hill:

Harper Neidig

Feb. 21 2016

 

New York County District Attorney Cyrus Vance, Jr. slammed Apple on Sunday for refusing to create backdoor software to allow the FBI to search a cellphone belonging to one of the San Bernardino shooters.

 

In a radio interview with John Catsimatidis, Vance said that the company is making an argument based on "a right to privacy that has never been [legally] recognized before." "Nobody wants to have government snooping in their phone, everybody wants privacy," he said. "But when there is proof that someone committed a crime, and evidence of that crime is on the phone, I don't think people using common sense would say that judges shouldn't be able to get that information."

 

Vance added that it's irresponsible of Apple to produce a "warrant-proof device" that shields rapists and murderers from law enforcement. "But when you're that big, when you control that many devices, when you know that criminals use the device, they have a responsibility to act as corporate citizens and help the government do its job."

 

Apple has argued that creating such a backdoor would make their devices vulnerable to "hackers and criminals" and not just searchable by law enforcement.

 

(Snip)