Tim Cook Talks Privacy, Encryption, Calls for “Back Door”, and More

When it comes to mobile devices there is one topic that’s always timely: privacy. Apple knows that, and to address privacy concerns recently announced changes in their privacy policy and explained how the company uses your data. This time NPR sat down with Apple CEO Tim Cook to find out more about this hot topic and much more.

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You may recall that Apple and other companies recently started reporting the number of government requests for data. That’s right; the government seeks Apple’s help from time to time, but as Tim Cook points out, Apple only grants access to user information if the request has been through the courts as required.

That’s a valuable step from Apple, considering the personal data we store on our devices: financial data, health info, and text messages. But Tim Cook reassures customers once again that data is encrypted and kept on the device.

When it comes to “back door” calls, Cook’s reply is clear and simple: If the good guys “have an open door in your software, the bad guys get in there, too.” He quickly points to the recent hack that resulted in tens of millions of government employees’ data being stolen.

That’s why Tim Cook’s position on the matter is:

And I think everybody’s coming around also to recognizing that any back door means a back door for bad guys as well as good guys. And so a back door is a nonstarter. It means we are all not safe. … I don’t support a back door for any government, ever.

The whole interview is well worth your time. You can read it on NPR’s website.

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