WozniakApple co-founder Steve Wozniak has backed Apple in its fight with the FBI over the agency's request that it unlock the iPhone at the center of the San Bernardino shooter investigation.

Wozniak appeared yesterday on late-night TBS talk show Conan to share his thoughts on the high-profile case, asserting that the FBI had "picked the lamest case they ever could: the two phones owned by the people who aren't even convicted terrorists and have not one link to a terrorist organization."

Verizon turned over all the phone records and SMS messages. So they want to take this other phone that the two didn't destroy - which was a work phone - and it's so lame and worthless to expect there's something on it and to try and force Apple to expose it.

The FBI has asked Apple to create a version of iOS that would both disable passcode security features and allow passcodes to be entered electronically, allowing it to then brute force the passcode on the device. Wozniak explained the inherent danger of the agency's request by recollecting his early coding days.

A couple of times in my life, I tried writing something like a virus that could spread itself between Macintosh computers. And each time I threw away every bit of code I'd written. I was so scared inside, because you do not want to let something like that out. Once you create something like that, there's a good chance hackers will get into it.

Wozniak's views are relatively unsurprising given his work for the San Fransisco-based Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a non-profit organization that Wozniak co-founded and which aims to protect individual rights in matters of technology. You can watch his comments on the case in full in the video below.


Apple's opposition to the order that would require it to help the FBI break into the San Bernardino shooter's iPhone will face off against the government in court on March 22.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Top Rated Comments

simonmet Avatar
105 months ago
Woz is like Papa Smurf of Apple!
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Ferc Kast Avatar
105 months ago
Wait. They already have the phone records and messages? Then, why in the world do they do they "need" Apple to break their own encryption for this phone? Smh.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
tentales Avatar
105 months ago
You tell'em Woz!


Unfortunately, no one at the FBI is listening to reason.
They want what they want, whatever it takes.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
whirldy Avatar
105 months ago
Yes! The FBI seems like the proverbial bratty child having a complete fit ("don't you know who I am?!") that they want something before they leave Toys 'R Us. :eek:
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jonnysods Avatar
105 months ago
He makes a great point. If America gets the back door, so does every government that Apple sells products in. No one is safe.

I have this awful feeling that this will go through, and this is how some crazy one world government conspiracy weirdness thing will go through where the government can watch their people and monitor their chatter because of this back door. Just hypothesizing. It's like watching the start of a movie or novel.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
shareef777 Avatar
105 months ago
Wait. They already have the phone records and messages? Then, why in the world do they do they "need" Apple to break their own encryption for this phone? Smh.
Because apparently they think life is a sitcom and the terrorists planned their entire attack in notes, the assumption is that they even included little sketches depicting their map route (yes, with stick figure men representing themselves and their victims). It even states why terrorism exists, how to solve it, and the meaning of life to boot!

The amount of effort the government applies against tracking and violating the rights of its own citizens instead of, you know, the actual terrorists is disgusting.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 16 Camera Lozenge 2 Perspective Gray

Five Key Upgrades Coming to iPhone 16

Friday March 15, 2024 1:45 pm PDT by
The iPhone is Apple's top-selling product, and it gets an update every year. In 2024, we're expecting the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro lineup, with an arguably more interesting feature set than we got with the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Capture Button All four iPhone 16 models are set to get a whole new button, which will be...
When To Expect New iPads Feature 1

Apple to Announce New iPads on March 26, Rumors Claim

Monday March 18, 2024 4:02 am PDT by
Apple is widely expected to release new iPad Air and OLED iPad Pro models in the next few weeks. According to new rumors coming out of Asia, the company will announce its new iPads on Tuesday, March 26. Chinese leaker Instant Digital on Weibo this morning 日发布%23">claimed that the date will see some sort of announcement from Apple related to new iPads, but stopped short of calling it an...
airpods 3 orange

Two New AirPods 4 Models Expected to Launch in September or October

Sunday March 17, 2024 7:56 am PDT by
Apple suppliers will begin production of two new fourth-generation AirPods models in May, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Based on this production timeframe, he expects the headphones to be released in September or October. Gurman expects both fourth-generation AirPods models to feature a new design with better fit, improved sound quality, and an updated charging case with a USB-C...
iphone se 4 modified flag edges

iPhone SE 4 Expected to Depreciate Heavily

Tuesday March 12, 2024 9:04 am PDT by
Resale value trends suggest the iPhone SE 4 may not hold its value as well as Apple's flagship models, according to SellCell. According to the report, Apple's iPhone SE models have historically depreciated much more rapidly than the company's more premium offerings. The third-generation iPhone SE, which launched in March 2022, experienced a significant drop in resale value, losing 42.6%...
General iOS 17 Feature Orange Purple

iOS 17.4.1 Update for iPhone is Imminent

Monday March 18, 2024 5:27 am PDT by
iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1 should be released within the next few days, with a build number of 21E235, according to a source with a proven track record. MacRumors previously reported that Apple was internally testing iOS 17.4.1. As a minor update for the iPhone, it will likely address software bugs and/or security vulnerabilities. It is unclear if the update will include any other changes. ...
iOS 17 Passkey With Apple ACCOUNT Feature

'Apple ID' Expected to Change to 'Apple Account' Starting With iOS 18

Sunday March 17, 2024 7:13 am PDT by
MacRumors was first to report that Apple was planning to rebrand "Apple ID" to "Apple Account" across its software platforms and websites like iCloud.com as early as this year, and now Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has corroborated this change. A mockup of the new Apple Account branding In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said the new "Apple Account" branding will start to be used later this...
M3 iPad Feature 3

New iPads Likely to Begin Shipping in April

Monday March 18, 2024 9:52 am PDT by
Apple's new iPad Pro models with OLED displays will likely begin shipping to customers in April, according to information shared today by Ross Young, CEO of display industry research firm Display Supply Chain Consultants. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman also said the new iPad Pro models might not ship until "deeper" into April in his Power On newsletter on Sunday:I've repeatedly said that new...