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Should Apple grant FBI's decryption request?

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Apple has defied the requests of the FBI and Department of Justice and refuses to create a “backdoor” to access secure data from one of its iPhones. The phone in question belongs to San Bernardino terrorist Syed Farook. Last Friday the Justice Department issued a motion compelling Apple to follow the FBI’s orders, but Apple says unlocking this phone sets a dangerous precedent. Apple’s CEO Tim Cook went as far as writing a letter to Apple’s customers explaining their position.

Supporters of Apple building a backdoor have claimed that it would be only used on this one phone and could easily be destroyed after. Others who support the FBI's position claim that Apple’s refusal is merely a marketing or branding strategy and argue the request wouldn't create a dangerous precedent. Presidential candidate Donald Trump even called for a boycott of the company.

Opponents, like exiled Edward Snowden, have said that this “master key” would violate the privacy and security of millions if it existed. Apple argues that if it created this key, other countries could request Apple to give it to them, further violating the privacy rights of its customers and perhaps exposing citizens to cybercriminals. Other tech conglomerates have sided with Apple, such as Google and Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg.

Expert on security and University of New Hampshire Professor James Ramsay, wrote an article on the legal and privacy concerns found by both sides. Click here to read the article.

UPDATE: Read our Citizen Voices℠ report and find out where New Hampshire stands on this issue.

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