HOW SAFE ARE MY NUDES?How has the security of the

iPhone evolved over time, is it safe?

Eseta Clarke

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How Safe Is My iPhone?Eseta Clarke

Everyone has experienced that “oh sh#*” heart dropping moment when you think you’ve lost your precious iPhone. While tearing your room apart, patting all your pockets and emptying the contents of your bag, at the back of your mind you begin to question the contents of your iphone and how safe it ‘truly’ is EVEN with a passcode placed on it. This begs the ultimate question, of how reliable is the security of Apple Iphone? A great example is the constant clash that Apple tended to have with the Government in terms of civil liberties. In 2016, The FBI had recovered an Apple iPhone owned by the notorious Syed Rizwan Farook who was one of the shooters involved in the December 2015 San Bernardino attack. This attack had unforntunately killed 14 people and seriously injured 22. With the shooters Iphone held as potential information, the phone was simply locked with a 4 digit passcode that the FBI could not bypass.

Knowing that the Iphone could contain crucial evidence, the FBI essentially tried to force Apple to assist investigators with gaining access to the shooters phone. This was later denied after much debate as the company believed that it violated the first amendment law. Providing help to break into this one iPhone, Apple argued that it could potentially create a dangerous way to bypass iPhone password protection against the law enforcement or even the spy agencies of other countries.So if the Federal Beureau of Investigation couldn’t hack into or bypass the Iphone’s 4 digit lock screen, what does that mean for us? Isn’t that a good thing? I dont know about you, but I find a sense of relief in knowing that Apple protects their customers even against the government. With the constant advancement in technology, I believe that todays society take the security of contents on their iphones

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seriously, which brings me to the privacy features of the Iphone that have continously evolved over time. With the release of the first iphone, the traditional ‘4 digit passcode’ was seen as the most secure way to lock away your secrets however, the possible combinations were limited to 10,000 decreasing the security of the device. The introduction of iOS.9, saw the increase of the passcodes to 6 digits rather than 4 which resulted in an endless amount of combination possibilities. Todays generation of Iphones are currently rolling out the most complex security features in the newer models such as fingerprint scanning, alphanumeric and wait for it.. facial recognition passcodes (WOW). Through my research I have discovered statistics that show the percentage of users that implicate the different passcodes on their devices with majority of users having a general lock

on their phone. In my opinion, I believe the Iphone provides the best forms of security not just against the typical little sibling trying to guess your passcode but from bigger things such as encryption/data protection, app, network and overall system security. Overall, this article should give you a sense of relief that the simple passcode you put in place on your Iphone can protect you from several things long term.

References:

iOS Security. (March, 2017). Retrieved 28 September from https://www.apple.com/business/docs/iOS_Security_Guide.pdfKharlpal, A. (2016, March 29). Apple vs FBI: All You Need To Know. CNBC. Retrieved from https://www.cnbc.com/2016/03/29/apple-vs-fbi-all-you-need-to-know.html

Long, J. (2016, Feb 29). The Evolution of Iphone Security and Privacy Features. Intego. Retrieved from https://www.intego.com/mac-security-blog/the-evolution-of-ios-security-and-privacy-features/Breaking Down Apple’s Fight with the Government. (2016, March 21). Retrieved September 27 from https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/03/03/technology/apple-iphone-fbi-fight-explained.htmlNaylor, B. (2016, Feb 20). Apple Boycott. Retrieved from http://www.scpr.org/news/2016/02/19/57752/san-bernardino-justice-department-files-new-motion/

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4 DIGIT PASSCODE 6 DIGIT/ALPHAMERICPASSCODE

FINGERPRINT SCANNER NO PASSCODE

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STATISTICS OF WHAT SECURITY FEATURE IS USED THE MOST.

4 DIGIT PASSCODE

ALPHANUMERIC

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STATISTICS OF WHAT SECURITY FEATURE IS USED THE MOST.

FINGERPRINT

NO PASSCODE