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Pew Research Center has conducted a study regarding the recent court case between the FBI and Apple, with the results showing that the majority of Americans believe that Apple should allow the FBI to be granted the ability to unlock the iPhone 5c found in the San Bernardino terror suspect’s vehicle.
Apple CEO Tim Cook had warned that complying with the FBI’s demand would effectively create an iOS backdoor that could prove to be detrimental to the privacy of Apple users. The study found that 51% of Americans believed that Apple should unlock the iPhone, compared to the 38% who believed that the tech giant shouldn’t unlock the iPhone. 11% stated that they were unsure of what the company should do.
The data posted by Pew also revealed that most every demographic leaned more towards granting the FBI access to the iPhone, aside from Democrats who favored Apple refraining from allowing the FBI to unlock the device.
Tim Cook fiercely defended Apple’s right to abstain from providing the FBI with the means to unlock the FBI, posting an open letter on the Apple site that suggested doing so would “undermine decades of security advancements.” Since then numerous figureheads in the tech industry have shared their thoughts on the case, including Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg.
Apple has until Friday to comply with the FBI’s demands though it is uncertain which direction the company will head in. Though this is an understandably divisive issue, it is curious that Pew’s data highlights that such a large number of Americans would agree with the FBI being provided with an iOS backdoor, considering that we’re not that far removed from the NSA leaks.
(Via Pew Research Center)
