Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is planning to challenge Investigatory Power Bill which if passed, would add to the strength of already powerful law enforcement agencies to investigate potential terrorist attacks. The bill would also grant the government permission to view the browsing history of British users.
According To Apple, the UK is currently granted access quite a vast amount of data so the need for more as well weakening users privacy will naturally be called into question. A California-based company is weighed in on the matter saying that the passing of such a bill will lay waste to so many primary tools such as encryption and there is no doubt that many government spy agencies, as well as sophisticated hackers, will seek to take advantage of this vulnerability.
Also, this would be followed by many new laws being amended to support this move which will, in turn, lay waste to many multinational corporations given the laws that will be made specific to each country.
In simple terms, what is being said even though the motive for passing this bill is understood, this doesn’t make it a justifiable act seeing that like to every good thing, there is also a bad side and companies such as Microsoft, Twitter and Google will be submitting to the evidence committee highlighting the fact that there are more than enough people who will be ready and waiting to pounce if such an opportunity should ever arise.
The British Security Minister stated in an email on Tuesday that the government is aware of the need to equip intelligence and security agencies with the necessary powers required to clamp down on terrorism in this digital age, and went further by saying that the bill will not be introducing any new powers and strict oversight will be given to any form of interception.
Some US technology companies have been strengthening their use of encryption since the revelation of a number of eye-opening facts by Edward Snowden, who was a so-called whistle blower on the National Security Agency. Being an outspoken advocate for the strengthening of such a valuable tool, Apple CEO Tim Cook has been making his points clear through various mediums and in a recent interview made it clear that the terrorist attacks in Paris have not shifted his view in the issue given governments possess quite a number of tools in their arsenal to prevent such attacks.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has always been in cooperation with the British government when there is a need for information by law enforcement. However, they remained steady on the notion that such a move may help catch a lot of criminals as well as save a lot of lives, but in the same breath passing such a bill will not only weaken the encryption infrastructure of a company; it will also jeopardize the lives of many law-abiding citizens.
They went even further to explain that even if the bill is taken off the table, terrorists will just find more creative ways and means to wreak havoc as they wish, hence defeating the purpose of the bill.
