Ever since Apple published their customer letter on their position on customer privacy and their decision not to assist the FBI in gaining access to a single iPhone, a number of civil rights groups and tech companies have come out in support of Apple’s position. The EFF applauded Apple for standing up for real security and the rights of its customers, while the American Civil Liberties Union and Amnesty International had similar support. Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Edward Snowden, and WhatsApp founder Jan Kourn have also supported Apple’s stance.
Individuals have taken to the streets, with campaigners rallying to support Apple’s stance on government backdoors. MacRumors writes an internet rights advocacy group held a rally outside a San Francisco Apple Store, while separately, a petition urging the White House to support Apple in their fight against government backdoors has taken off (although that ship may have already sailed). Meanwhile, Australia’s own Attorney-General George Brandis has maintained his relevance by saying Apple should unlock the device for the FBI.
Both iMore and Troy Hunt have published “everything you need to know” articles about the entire saga. There’s more to all of this than initially meets the eye, and it’s perhaps a much bigger deal that we all think, and may set the precedent for future privacy debates. If you’re still not sure what’s going on, an amusing video from your favourite Taiwanese animators tells it like it is. Although their portrayal of FBI monkeys and iOS security being behind many locked doors may not be entirely accurate, they’ve got many of the aspects down pat.
Apple has re-released iOS 9.2.1 with a fix for the Error 53 which disabled iPhones due to non-genuine parts. In a statement released to TechCrunch, Apple has also apologised to any inconvenience caused to customers.
Bloomberg Business has a profile of Johny Srouji. Srouji is Apple’s SVP of hardware technologies and the company’s chief chipmaker, although the success of recent A8 and A9 series chips can be attributed to his team. Thanks to the profile, MacRumors says there’s a good chance the smaller iPhone and iPad Air successor will use the A9 and A9X chips currently found in the iPhone 6s and iPad Pro.
As found by Toby and posted about in the forums, Apple is now offering pick up points in Australia, a way to get your packages delivered to your local newsagent or post office instead of to your door.
In the US, Apple’s “trade up with installments” upgrade program means customers can trade in any eligible iPhone without paying any upfront cost, instead spreading the upgrade cost over monthly repayments.
1Password has introduced a way for you to share passwords with your family. 1Password for Families gives up to five users access to your vault for $5 a month, including 1GB of secure document storage and all the other great 1Password perks.
Australian developers The Escapers have released Flux 6, their web design app that combines a powerful WYSIWYG engine with a flexible code engine, for those that like to dabble behind the scenes. There’s a 30-day trial available from their website, if other website-building tools haven’t tickled your fancy.
Apple’s latest TV ads tell us how amazing Live Photos are, and how much time 3D Touch saves you. I’m really enjoying the light-hearted voiceovers on these.
Originally published at: http://appletalk.com.au/2016/02/friday-morning-news190216/