“An Australian teenager who has built an online following by leaking pictures of upcoming Apple Inc products has done it again, showing off the purported fingerprint scanner of the latest iPhone ahead of its expected launch next week,” Michael Sin reports for Reuters. “Sonny Dickson, who lives with his parents in suburban Melbourne, attracted attention in August after he released detailed pictures and videos of the new grey and champagne casing on the upcoming iPhone. On Thursday, Dickson leaked what he says are the first detailed pictures of the new model’s new ‘home’ button with its rumoured biometric fingerprint scanner.”
Sin reports, “Apple declined to comment on Dickson’s actions, and he says they have never contacted him about it. Dickson told Reuters he has five to 10 sources in China who buy Apple prototype parts directly from factory-line workers, which are then sold from $250 to $500. His sources then send him photos and videos of the parts, which are posted under his name on his website and YouTube channel, which generate ad revenue.”
“While Dickson denies he is breaking any laws, experts are not so sure,” Sin reports. ‘He may not think or know he’s doing the wrong thing, but a court would say Apple is one of the most tight and restricted IT producers in the world, notorious for locking things down,’ said David Vaile, executive director at the Cyberspace Law and Policy Centre at the University of New South Wales in Sydney. ‘It’s also possible that generating ad revenue will open him to a wider range of offences.’ Dickson says he would stop if told to by Apple, where he has hopes of working one day. ‘I’m not doing it just to piss them off – I still buy their products.'”
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