Commentary
John Oliver Makes Apple's Case For Encryption
- by Wendy Davis , Staff Writer @wendyndavis, March 14, 2016
Influential comedian John Oliver, who helped galvanize public support for net neutrality rules, is now defending Apple in its encryption battle with the FBI.
On Sunday, Oliver devoted 18 minutes of his HBO show "Last Week Tonight" to examining the problems with the FBI's demand that Apple develop new software to help authorities unlock an iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino shooters.
Oliver repeats many of the arguments made by Apple supporters, but does so in a way that could resonate with people more than the dry legal papers.
"Think of the government as your dad," Oliver says. "If he asks you to help him with his iPhone, be careful because if you do it once you're going to be doing it 14 times a day. And whatever happens in this case will have ramifications, because the FBI ultimately wants Apple and the entire tech industry to have its encryption always be weak enough that the company can access customer data if law enforcement needs it."
Oliver also points out that debates about back doors into technology aren't new. "We've been down this road before," he says, before launching into an explanation of the "Clipper chip."
In the early 1990s, the government promoted the Clipper chip as a way to defeat encryption in communication devices. But in 1994, computer science professor Matt Blaze discovered a security flaw in the programming; that discovery led to the end to the initiative.
Oliver also points out that even if the FBI wins this battle, the war over encryption will continue: "If you really want to keep your communications secret, there's an app for that," he says. "People who want encryption will always be able to find it."
Oliver mentions Telegram and WhatsApp by name, adding that there are others -- including ones developed abroad.
"There is no easy side to be on in this debate. Strong encryption has its costs," he says. "But I happen to feel that the risks of weakening encryption, even a little bit, even just for the government, are potentially much worse."
Wendy Davis is a Senior Writer at MediaPost. You can reach Wendy at wdavis@mediapost.com
Data is not special. Just like everything else in the world a legitimate court order ought to be able to allow access to it. Terchnology must never be allowed to prohibit a legally permissable and legitimate process. The fears of a back door are BS. It would be very easy for Apple to create a device specific key that required physical access to a device in order to unlock it, rendering all worries about remote access moot.