The debate around Apple’s encryption of iOS devices has stepped up a notch since last week’s ruling by the U.S. Justice Department that the company should be made to unlock the phone of San Bernardino shooter Syed Rizwan Farook. Concerned that it may be forced to unlock the phone, Apple has now stepped up its efforts to make future iOS versions even more secure, the Wall Street Journal reports today.
The FBI wants Apple to develop a new version of iOS that could be applied to Farook’s phone as a software update. It would remove the device’s protection mechanisms, providing access to the data stored on the phone.
The encryption keys and other sensitive security data are stored in the iOS “Secure Enclave” but the software for this feature can be updated without knowing the user’s password. Theoretically, this allows for the kind of data recovery that the FBI wants.
In fear that the government may force it to build this hypothetical iOS version, Apple has decided it will render the technique impossible with the next release of iOS. The Wall Street Journal cites people “familiar with the effort” in saying it wants to disable password-less software updates, locking the FBI and others out until a valid password is entered.
Unusually, the immediate threat that Apple is defending against isn’t a widespread security issue or rebel hackers. Instead, it is having to lock itself out of its own creation so it is never forced to unlock an iPhone by the government.
The update apparently won’t be available for the iPhone 5C, the model owned by Farook. Newer phones may gain even more protection from the summer though as the issue has been made a priority at the company. The FBI’s proposed method to access Farook’s iPhone would become useless on newer devices, requiring the design and development of a new technique.
Apple’s security engineers realised that the Secure Enclave’s update feature is a potential vulnerability some time ago, according to The Wall Street Journal. The company has now escalated the problem to quickly find a solution amid the storm of media coverage of the case against the FBI.
Apple has refused to help unlock Farook’s iPhone, claiming it would be “bad for America” if the company were to comply. CEO Tim Cook has warned that obliging the government once could set a dangerous precedent for the future, declaring that unlocking the phone would be the “software equivalent of cancer.”
The company said: “Building a version of iOS that bypasses security in this way would undeniably create a backdoor. And while the government may argue that its use would be limited to this case, there is no way to guarantee such control.”
Since the FBI’s ruling against Apple, new information has come to light suggesting law enforcement is already trying to access at least 11 other iPhones. Apple argues that unlocking one device could make it obliged to unlock more alongside it, putting the company in a dangerous and unpredictable position for the future. It wrote in an open letter earlier this month that the implications of the government’s demands are “chilling.”
