With the new release of Apple’s iPhone 6 and iOS 8, Apple followed up with a statement on how it is now protecting user’s data from the government. As news broke, people cheered for the fact that their belongings were no longer able to be broken into by Apple per request from the government. The only catch? Just because Apple refuses to do it, and cannot do it, does not mean it isn’t impossible.
“Unlike our competitors, Apple cannot bypass your passcode and therefore cannot access [your personal] data,” says the new policy. “So it’s not technically feasible for us to respond to government warrants for the extraction of this data from devices in their possession running iOS 8.”
As users around the world celebrate Apple, one iOS forensics expert Jonathan Zdziarski, warned users; just because Apple refuses to help officials snoop through phones, doesn’t mean that the government can’t do it themselves regardless. Without having to hack your password, all the government needs is an powered-on phone, and a computer device that you have connected to in the past.
Quickly following the announcement, Zdziarski stated that he and his own forensic software were still able to take out information from an iOS 8 devise. Things like Twitter, Facebook, Web browsers, photos and videos were all compromised– all without knowing one’s passcode.
To be reasonable although Apple said that it won’t be helping aid in the raiding of users electronics, does not mean that it cannot be done. Police can use this method when confiscating phones in crime investigations, at airports, etc. Although it looks like Apple is trying to take a stand and take sides with their customers, they should still warn you that with a little digging, the government still has the ability to take a peek at your phone.
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