Linked List: March 10, 2016

Thursday, 10 March 2016

Bruce Sewell: ‘The Tone of the Brief Reads Like an Indictment’ ★

Bruce Sewell, in an on-the-record conference call with reporters:

The tone of the brief reads like an indictment. We’ve all heard director Comey and Attorney General Lynch thank Apple for its consistent help in working with law enforcement. Director Comey’s own statement…that there are no demons here? We certainly wouldn’t conclude it from this brief. In 30 years of practice, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a legal brief that was more intended to smear the other side with false accusations and innuendo, and less intended to focus on the real merits of the case. For the first time ever, we see an allegation that Apple has deliberately made changes to block law enforcement requests for access. This should be deeply offensive to everyone that reads it. An unsupported, unsubstantiated effort to vilify Apple rather than confront the issues in the case. […]

Look, we know there are great people in the DoJ and the FBI. We work shoulder to shoulder with them all the time. That’s why this cheap shot brief surprises us so much. We help when we’re asked to. We’re honest about what we can and can’t do. Let’s at least treat one another with respect and get this case before the American people in a responsible way. We are going to court to exercise our legal rights. Everyone should beware, because it seems like disagreeing with the Department of Justice means you must be evil and anti-American. Nothing could be further from the truth.

I was on the call, and my impression is that Sewell and Apple are seething. I get the sense there’s an aspect of “Fool us once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.” Apple was surprised last month when the DOJ decided to fight this in public. But until today, the tone has been civil. Adversarial, clearly — there is no middle ground. But civil. Today, though, the DOJ made things nasty. I think Apple was genuinely surprised by the threatening tone and nature of today’s brief. The DoJ’s brief contains an outright threat to confiscate the source code to iOS. That’s insane.

Apple’s not going to be surprised again.

The Verge is hosting a copy of the DOJ’s brief. Worth reading.

NSA Data Will Soon Routinely Be Used for Domestic Policing That Has Nothing to Do With Terrorism ★

Radley Balko, writing for The Washington Post:

On the one hand, I guess it’s better that this new data-sharing policy is acknowledged in the open instead of carried out surreptitiously. On the other hand, there’s something even more ominous about the fact that they no longer feel as though they need to hide it.

It’s all another sobering reminder that any powers we grant to the federal government for the purpose of national security will inevitably be used just about everywhere else. And extraordinary powers we grant government in wartime rarely go away once the war is over. And, of course, the nifty thing for government agencies about a “war on terrorism” is that it’s a war that will never formally end.

This is literally the plot from Spectre.

$20 ‘Blockhead’ Adapter Lets MacBook Charger Sit Flush Against Wall ★

It’s an interesting idea, and I know a few spots in my house where this would come in useful. But I really wish the prongs folded up (like Apple’s do).

Eric Schmidt Spotted Snapping Pics With an Apple iPhone ★

Apple Insider:

Former Google CEO and current Alphabet Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt was in South Korea for a press event this week, where he was spotted taking pictures of the event using an Apple iPhone instead of a Google Android handset. […]

While the sight of Schmidt using an iPhone, and not an Android device, may come as a surprise to some, it’s not entirely unexpected — Schmidt continued to use a BlackBerry well after the launch of Android, candidly admitting he preferred the handset’s physical keyboard.

Curious what the story is here.

Apple Event Officially Scheduled for Monday, March 21 ★

As expected, it’s a small event on Apple’s Infinite Loop campus in Cupertino. Could be the last-ever public event in their Town Hall theater.