Apple vs FBI in Encryption battle

The battle continues with private technology company, Apple Inc., against the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in a Tuesday court hearing regarding the encryption debate. Apple remains firm in its stand to oppose the government's proposal of getting a hold of devices like that of Apple's to get information in solving crimes or preventing them.

In a Tuesday hearing, the issue on technology security had been tackled with several oppositions and supporters stating their stance and urging for each of their rights. Apple, which obviously fights for the right to privacy and government interference.

Meanwhile, the FBI urges for Apple to disable passcode protections on a device for them to be able to crack the case open and get information citing the recent San Bernardino case where the shooter, Rizwan Farook's phone was accessed, Reuters reports.

According to the publication, the FBI stresses that certain situations require the "services and specialized skills that we can only get through the private industry, and that partnership is critical to our success," FBI technology official Amy Hess testified.

Meanwhile, Apple General Counsel Bruce Sewell testified for the opposite and even clarified that recent claims on Apple cooperating with the Chinese government are absolutely false. This is so because the company fears that once they open their doors to the U.S. government's interference, other governments would request the same, as per the news agency.

However, even with the strong resistance, Apple wishes to get out of the hassles of court, as per CNet. "If we can get out of the lawsuit world," Sewell said as per the publication. "Let's start cooperating," he added.

As the issue comes deeper, another angle was looked at during the hearing, which involved the government already getting help from a third party to encrypt devices rather than cooperate with private companies like Apple.

This is so after a reported 67 Apple devices from October 2015 to March 2016 are implicated in 44 violent crimes, 23 felonies, including 10 homicides, two rapes, and the shooting of an officer failed to be encrypted, as per Thomas Galati, chief of intelligence at the New York Police Department, Reuters reports.

This is not supported by Sewell, who urges for the government to look into other options. "We see the world in a very different way," Sewell said as per CNet. "We see that there's an abundance of information. This will continue as...an Internet of Things becomes reality."

This is opposed by U.S. Rep. Tim Murphy, who replied, "I have no idea what you just said." 

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Apple Inc, Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI, Encryption battle, Encryption debate, Bruce Sewell, Amy Hess

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