Why Tim Cook really won't unlock that iPhone

U.S. law might allow for the universal phone hack, but Apple culture certainly doesn't

Creating a backdoor for the iPhone could cause many negative repercussions.
(Image credit: AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Tim Cook just gave the FBI the middle finger. Or something close to it.

Let's back up. One of the perpetrators of the December mass shooting in San Bernardino owned an iPhone. That iPhone is locked, and when an iPhone is locked, there's just no way to get inside it. Or, you know, maybe not. So, according to an open letter to customers by Apple CEO Tim Cook, published on the company's website, the FBI asked Apple to create, essentially, a new version of iOS, the operating system that runs iPhones and iPads, that includes what's known in technical terms as a "backdoor," a secret master key that can give an unauthorized user control over the system. According to Apple, the FBI is trying to do this through an obscure law known as the All Writs Act of 1789.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry

Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry is a writer and fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. His writing has appeared at Forbes, The Atlantic, First Things, Commentary Magazine, The Daily Beast, The Federalist, Quartz, and other places. He lives in Paris with his beloved wife and daughter.