The New York State Assembly is currently working on a bill that would require companies like Apple to decrypt and unlock their devices to aid law enforcement.
Every smartphone sold or leased in New York after January 1, 2016, will have to be able to be decrypted or unlocked by the manufacturer or OS provider. There's not much manufacturers can do to stop this, because under the bill, if manufacturers or OS providers don't comply, they'll be subject to a fine of $2,500 per device.
As big as Apple is in the stock market, it wouldn't be able to pay a $2,500 fine per device. State Assemblyman Matthew Titone introduced the bill last summer and referred it to committee on Jan. 6. In his notes, Titone justified the decryption of smartphones by citing public safety, as he states in the bill:
“Citizen safety requires a legislative solution. Enacting this bill would penalize those who sell smartphones that are beyond the reach of law enforcement. The fact is that while the new software may enhance privacy for some users, it seriously hinders law enforcement’s ability to assist victims. All the data contained in smartphones and similar devices will hinder law enforcement, as long as criminals have the foresight to protect their devices with passwords. Of course they will.”
While the final draft of the bill has been drafted, it now needs to be voted on by both the House and Senate. Apple CEO Tim Cook has been outspoken against backdooring encryption technology, stating that if ethical hackers can gain access, then so will those who want to cause trouble. Even last month, Apple criticized the proposed U.K. investigatory powers bill, which would essentially allow users’ histories to be tracked and a backdoor to be inserted
There is still hope for Apple and other manufacturers who want to continue providing users with unparalleled encryption because the bill has yet to be passed.
