Apple’s obsession for security and privacy is all too well known, something that is evident once again what with reports coming in of it hiring the same person who contributed towards developing the secure messaging service that Edward Snowden uses.
Frederic Jacobs, who will be joining Apple as an intern this summer, hails from Switzerland. He has earlier been associated with Whisper Systems for two and a half years developing codes for the messaging app Signal, the app that NSA whistle-blower Snowden prefers to use.
The Signal app has also won critical acclaims in an EFF survey for being extremely secure and robust. The app is also known to be virtually impossible to break into and can successfully wade off the threats posed by some of the best data excavation tools currently available.
Jacobs said he looks forward to lending his expertise to further enhance the security of Apple’s operating systems. According to Jacobs, the very proprietary technology of Apple’s services makes it impossible to detect vulnerabilities and take remedial measures.
Jacobs is set to join the CoreOS security team at the Cupertino company which he said has a lot of scope for some serious improvement. Apple, on its part, is keen to adopt encryption technologies that would make iPhone backups on iCloud from the prying eyes of all, including Apple itself.
That, in other words, will make for a total security solution with Apple too having no access to the user data it stores.
What is also significant is that the above development has come at a time when Apple is locked in a fierce battle with FBI while a security vs. privacy debate rages worldwide. FBI is seeking Apple’s cooperation in unlocking the iPhone 5c used by one of the prime accused in a terror case.
Apple has however stated it will not budge from its stand of remaining committed to providing utmost security to user’s data stored on its devices. Apple CEO Tim Cook has even gone to the extent of terming FBI’s request of developing means to grant the security agency access to the iPhone 5c as nothing short of cancer, which in the wrong hands can wreak havoc to the millions of iPhone devices currently in use. That would be nothing short a security catastrophe that Apple is keen to avoid at all costs.
