Linked List: March 15, 2016

Tuesday, 15 March 2016

Apple’s Final Brief Heading Into Federal Court ★

Greg Kumparak and Matthew Panzarino, writing for TechCrunch:

During a call last week about the filing, Apple executives, including general counsel Bruce Sewell, spoke in a way that can be best characterized as surprised and outraged. The FBI’s tone shift from legal argument to character assassination in its filings had clearly taken Apple off guard.

The tone of today’s filing and subsequent call was much more cold and precise. Apple got some time to consider the best way to respond and went with dissecting the FBI’s technical arguments in a series of precise testimonies by its experts.

Where the FBI filing last week relied on invective, Apple’s this week relies on poking holes in critical sections of the FBI’s technical narrative.

TechCrunch has the full brief embedded at the bottom of the post. It’s worth reading — inevitably some of it is inside baseball legalese, but it seems clear to me that Apple’s lawyers have made a tremendous effort to make it as accessible as possible. On some points they simply tear apart the government’s factual errors.

Steven Troughton-Smith’s WWDC Wish List ★

Steven Troughton-Smith:

I don’t often do this, but this year I think it’s important; Apple is more open and receptive to feedback today than it ever has been. With iOS 9 and iPad Pro, iOS has made a tremendous leap in the past year on iPad. With that in mind, I wanted to note down all the things in my head that I really want to see the iOS computing platform grow to cover.

What follows is an unordered list of things I’d like to see from Apple over the next few years, starting with the easy and obvious things upfront.

Pretty solid list.

Apple Should Own the Term ‘Warrant Proof’ ★

Jonathan Zdziarski:

We, as everyday Americans, should also encourage the idea of warrant proof places. The DOJ believes, quite erroneously, that the Fourth Amendment gives them the right to any evidence or information they desire with a warrant. The Bill of Rights did not grant rights to the government; it protected the rights of Americans from the overreach that was expected to come from government. Our most intimate thoughts, our private conversations, our ideas, our intent are all things our phone tracks. These are concepts that must remain private (if we choose to protect them) for any functioning free society. In today’s technological landscape, we are no longer giving up just our current or future activity under warrant, but for the first time in history, making potentially years of our life retroactively searchable by law enforcement. Things are recorded in ways today that no one would have imagined, even when CALEA was passed. The capability that DOJ is asserting is that our very lives and identities — going back across years — are subject to search. The Constitution never permitted this.

If you read the government’s brief from last week, every instance of the adjective “warrant-proof” could be replaced by the word “secure”.

The government is trying to claim that Apple designed recent iPhones specifically to stymie law enforcement investigations. The feds leading this charge clearly do not understand many of the technical issues, but on this point they are being willfully obtuse. Apple designed the iPhone to be secure, and as a natural consequence of that security, their protections are harder to breach for everyone, including law enforcement.

How Diffie-Hellman Public Key Cryptography Works ★

A bit of history on public key cryptography, followed by a wonderfully cogent layperson’s explanation for how public key cryptography works. The analogy to mixing paint is so good.

Instagram to Switch to Algorithmic Feed Order ★

Instagram:

The order of photos and videos in your feed will be based on the likelihood you’ll be interested in the content, your relationship with the person posting and the timeliness of the post. As we begin, we’re focusing on optimizing the order — all the posts will still be there, just in a different order.

If your favorite musician shares a video from last night’s concert, it will be waiting for you when you wake up, no matter how many accounts you follow or what time zone you live in. And when your best friend posts a photo of her new puppy, you won’t miss it.

We’re going to take time to get this right and listen to your feedback along the way. You’ll see this new experience in the coming months.

I trust Instagram to get this right.

Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford Reunite for Fifth Indiana Jones Movie ★

Variety:

Director Steven Spielberg and star Harrison Ford will make a fifth “Indiana Jones” film, to screen July 19, 2019, Disney announced Tuesday.

The release from the studio describes “a fifth epic adventure in the blockbuster series,” adding: “Steven Spielberg, who directed all four previous films, will helm the as-yet-untitled project with star Harrison Ford reprising his iconic role. Franchise veterans Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall will produce.”

Somebody’s name is conspicuously absent from this announcement.

Update: I was referring to George Lucas — who co-created the franchise with Spielberg and wrote the stories for all the previous movies. The story I’ve heard is that part of Harrison Ford’s deal to do The Force Awakens was that they’d also do another Indiana Jones movie and this time do it right, with no involvement from Lucas. That Shia LaBeouf wasn’t coming back went without saying: neither Spielberg nor Ford liked him.

Gene Munster on Apple Car Pricing ★

Apple Car Fans:

In terms of the most likely go to market price, Munster also has a strong opinion.

“If you look at the overall automotive industry Apple historically plays toward the high-end.” The price when Apple starts selling it in 2020 or 2021 will be “around $75,000.”

I think Apple Watch points the way to hypothetical Apple Car pricing, with two or three tiers with very different price points.

(Via Jalopnik, who missed a real opportunity with the image they chose to pointlessly illustrate their article. Clearly they should’ve used this.)

Objection: Apple Is Not a Monopoly ★

The Macalope:

Turns out smartphone security is not the only thing people in Washington D.C. are willfully obtuse about. Writing for The Hill, Glenn B. Manishin says it’s “Time to prosecute Apple for monopolization.”

Sure. It’s 5 o’clock somewhere.