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FBI Chief: Apple, Google Phone Encryption Perilous
An anonymous reader writes The FBI is concerned about moves by Apple and Google to include encryption on smartphones. "I like and believe very much that we should have to obtain a warrant from an independent judge to be able to take the contents," FBI Director James Comey told reporters. "What concerns me about this is companies marketing something expressly to allow people to place themselves beyond the law." From the article: "Comey cited child-kidnapping and terrorism cases as two examples of situations where quick access by authorities to information on cellphones can save lives. Comey did not cite specific past cases that would have been more difficult for the FBI to investigate under the new policies, which only involve physical access to a suspect's or victim's phone when the owner is unable or unwilling to unlock it for authorities."
He's saying that if you're accused of a crime, and a judge issues a court order to allow authorities to look at your phone (or other device), they have the legal right to. However, if that device is encrypted and the vendor has no way of decrypting it, it's up to you, the accused to provide the decryption key. By "forgetting" the key, you're placing yourself beyond the law.