“Apple Inc. has come out swinging in its pitched battle with the government on its home turf,” David Pierson reports for The Los Angeles Times. “But when it comes to its second-largest market, China, the Cupertino, Calif., company has been far more accommodating… [and] Beijing is increasingly tightening the screws on foreign technology companies, having introduced strict laws aimed at policing the Internet and digital hardware.”
“The environment will get even tougher, Apple says, if the FBI prevails in seeking a so-called backdoor to Farook’s phone,” Pierson reports. “That could set a precedent for China’s authoritarian leaders to demand the same in a country where Apple has never publicly defied orders.”
“The last time Apple was in the crosshairs of Chinese negative opinion was after the Edward Snowden National Security Agency leak in late 2013. Chinese state-run media began raising national security questions about the iPhone’s location-tracking feature. Communist party cadres and other officials were also urged to ditch their Apple devices,” Pierson reports. “The controversy underscored how quickly nationalistic sentiment in China can turn on a foreign brand. Amid the furor, Apple announced it was shifting local user data onto China-based servers.”
“‘Whatever data is on Chinese servers is susceptible to confiscation or even cryptanalysis,’ a sort of code cracking, said Jonathan Zdziarski, a leading expert in iPhone security,” Pierson reports. “But it’s not just the servers that pose a risk. Apple’s source codes could be stolen from one of its Chinese factories or during government security audits. ‘Most of the hardware tools that have hacked iPhones in the past all came out of China, and that’s probably for a reason,’ Zdziarski said. ‘”It’d be foolish to think that Apple could form a safe and healthy relationship with the Chinese government that didn’t put the U.S. at some level of higher risk.'”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: The People’s Republic of China is always troubling, as are all one-party communist states where freedom is tightly restricted. As someone with a bust of RFK and a photo of Martin Luther King Jr. in his office, Tim Cook must be wracked with internal conflict daily at having to do business in China at all, must less having it as his manufacturing headquarters and #1 market.
You can focus on things that are barriers or you can focus on scaling the wall or redefining the problem.— Apple CEO Tim Cook
SEE ALSO:
In Republican debate, candidates back U.S. government over Apple – February 26, 2016
Donald Trump calls for Apple boycott over San Bernardino terrorist iPhone encryption – February 19, 2016
Obama administration: We’re only demanding Apple hack just one iPhone – February 17, 2016
Apple CEO Tim Cook lashes out at Obama administration over encryption, bemoans White House lack of leadership – January 13, 2016
Obama administration wants access to smartphones – December 15, 2015
Hillary Clinton wants a ‘Manhattan Project’ to cure encryption; Snowden, Andreessen mock – December 21, 2015
Obama administration’s calls for backdoors into encrypted communications echo Clinton-era key escrow fiasco – December 14, 2015
Eric Schmidt-backed startup stealthily working to put Hillary Clinton in the White House – October 9, 2015
Obama administration war against Apple just got uglier – July 31, 2015
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Lynn Weiler” for the heads up.]
Apple is not a chinese company. Tim Cook is not a citizen of China.
Apple is an american company doing business in China. What is wrong with complying to local laws?
If you are so noble, you can go there and fight other people’s wars for them… That’s assuming, they even want you to fight for them.
All companies must abide by laws set by sovereign nations.
The only question Cook needs to answer is whether he wants their citizen’s money, or other strategic instrument.
Google opted out, for obvious reasons (and it wasn’t ideology).
Opted out, I think you should look deeper.
How does a reporter from the LA Times know about what Apple did or does not do for the Red Chinese. Stupid, modern day reporting.
Apple is not really accommodating to Chinese authorities — no back-doors were made for them or anyone else (at least yet).
But Apple did show some parts of iOS code to prove that iOS does not send data to CIA/NSA or whoever else. This is standard requirement for many governments; Microsoft, for example, provides for research full code of their Windows OS so that countries would allow use of their operating system in governments.
First part exactly.
“But Apple did show some parts of iOS code to prove that iOS does not send data to CIA/NSA or whoever else.”
this part… Is this yet another Chinese state run media claim? or actual truth..
The only one saying this is them, all other media outlets are referencing the same State run media that doesn’t exactly tell the truth about a bunch of things.
“Microsoft, for example, provides for research full code of their Windows OS so that countries would allow use of their operating system in governments.”
thats typical for security requirements of GOVERNMENT computers, not for all usage.
The version of windows the Gov uses is a locked down version of the typical windows. Some Gov agencies can use store bought copies with policies in place, others must use a specific Gov only version that is created in conjunction with MS. (it’s 99% the same, but has added security)
MS shows the code, not to the FBI etc.. but to a Government security team that does not then turn over that code to the FBI etc.
First off, the Chinese government monitors all communications and captures both the data and metadata (unlike the NSA who captures metadata only).
Secondly, the Chinese authorities would never request Apple’s co-operation through the media (unlike U.S. authorities).
Thirdly, if Chinese authorities have not requested a “back door” from Apple, it may simply be because they don’t need Apple’s co-operation to access the information the want or need (as stated by McAfee). In other words, Chinese authorities would already know how to hack Apple devices.
Thirdly, if Apple technology was “unhackable” as Apple likes to claim, there are likely many countries other than China and including Chine who would ban their devices from being sold.
Thanks, finally, someone else who understands Apple stand in USA has not been taken globally. I’m quite sure Apple can see China perusing through their servers in China.
Chinese are far behind NSA in terms of spying. They have no giant data centres to process and collect all of people’s data; their spying is more local.
Also, NSA spies on not only on metadata, but on all possible data. Snowden documents show that there are at least 18 programs that grab all kind of data on various levels.
“Apple announced it was shifting local user data onto China-based servers”
My reading of that is that iCloud and other data for iPhones users in China are now housed in China, instead of the USA.
And Apple has already complied with the FBI’s request to provide iCloud data in this specific case, i.e. *data in their actual possession* instead of on specific devices belonging to users, so there is absolutely no difference in how they’re co-operating with officials in China.
Under the Patriot Act, the location of the servers and/or who produced the data is irrelevant.
Under the Patriot Act, if the servers are owned and operated by a U.S. Corporation having establish their headquarters in the U.S., the data residing on the servers is said to belong to the U.S. corporation, no matter the origin of the data or the location of the producer of the data.
All U.S. corporations are required to co-operate with U.S. authorities.
reading the article it seems that Apple HAD to locate the data to Chinese servers because the Snowden leaks showed that the USA govt. (unfortunately) was stealing data from it’s citizens. China’s argument was that it’s citizens data was not safe in the USA. They have a point as doubtlessly Chinese businessmen, companies, govt. officials have iPhones.
(flamers note I’m NOT saying the Chinese govt is squeaky clean or not oppressive or better than USA etc, I’m just pointing out their argument for server relocation which Apple — due to Snowden’s revelations — can’t really refute)