Apple's Pegasus lawsuit a 'declaration of war' against offensive software developers, says Kaspersky director Kaspersky's APAC director of Global Research and Analysis, Vitaly Kamlyuk, has called Apple's lawsuit against Pegasus maker NSO a "declaration of war against software developers." On Tuesday, Apple filed suit against the cyber firm and its parent company for surveillance and targeting of US Apple users. Apple wants to prevent …
We should start from an axiom - law enforcement agencies require to be able to access communication and data storage for investigations - which could be wholly lawful and to combat nasty crimes. Of course the same technologies can be used to commit nasty crimes - it's not different from guns. And even common people do employ surveillance cameras that can be used to protect people and properties, or to peep.
NSO still made the huge mistake of selling to the wrong government and agencies - and in some cases it can amount to a crime, and I'm not going to say that all governments and law enforcement agencies are wrong - although the more power they get the more accountable they must be.
Still these tools are here to stay - unless we want to see more government pressure to cripple cryptography, provide interception facilities, and require access to data stored by companies. But maybe that's what Apple & C. exactly want? Because that will put THEM in charge of what information can be accessed by law enforcement agencies, under their full control.
For example a spyware could hit - let's imagine for wholly lawful reasons - Tim Cook iPhone. And Apple would have no way to control it. But if law enforcement agencies have to ask Apple to graciously provide access to that, they have the power to decide what is accessed.
Just like banks offer ways to customers who can pay for it to get a far higher degree of "secrecy", I wouldn't be surprised if that happens or will happen in the comm/data storage arena....
law enforcement agencies require to be able to access communication and data storage for investigations
Law enforcement agencies undoubtedly want such access, but it should be up to the courts to decide, on a case by case basis, if it is required.
The fact they need a warrant still means the law empowers law enforcement agencies with that access - they just need the proper oversight to avoid abuses - it's just separation of powers. The court authorize then and they access communications or data, Judges can authorize it but can't perform the investigation themselves. It's that simple.
And yet, what oversight aqnd accountability Apple & C. have? They force all your data through themselves. And decide about their access in very opaque ways.
They may not have been, but I will. Yes, those are courts I include on the list, which is why I take a dim view of NSO and companies like them facilitating the penetration of technical defenses. The U.S. may not be using them; I have not seen them on any of the lists of NSO clients that have been released so far. However, the U.S. develops similar exploits and I want them to stop. I want everyone doing such things to stop committing these crimes, and if NSO is the low hanging fruit on the issue, then start there.
@LDS
OK, you don't like Apple. I get it. I look forward to reading more of your theories on, let's say, El regs' privacy policy, or maybe Google? Or whatever search engine you use. For what it is worth, Here is Apples' privacy policy. It's written in English, not that legal stuff.
Warning, PDF link.
https://www.apple.com/legal/privacy/pdfs/apple-privacy-policy-en-ww.pdf
> "Furthermore, a US appeals court ruled earlier this month that the Israel-based firm cannot hide behind its government clients when it comes to litigation"
In which case, I can't wait for all the class action lawsuits against the companies that contribute to the military-industrial complex, brought against them by the various human rights organisations. Sorry Blackwater, you're fucked now, according to this court.
I severely MISREAD this article as if they were talking about getting rid of OFFENSIVE to one's sensibilities software. I.e. get rid of all software that has swearing, sex, violence, etc. in it .... which I thought GOOD LUCK WITH THAT! It took me a second or ten to realize they were talking about software that exploits machine and user vulnerabilities.
That goal of removing offensive-capability software is kinda difficult to do when I could replace parts of the BIOS on a GPU (i.e. graphics card) to take screen shots every 5 seconds and compress/encrypt it out to some unnamed website folder OR I could modify ANY software executable in a certain way that its hash value (i.e. digital signature) STILL calculates out to the original correct value BUT NOW HAS the modified bytes in it that do my dastardly deeds!
...OR....
I could secretly strobe your display in such a way to embed sub-conscious and subliminal messages that tell you to buy my products or goto my websites which will steal your passwords or make you spend large amounts of money on useless items or services! I could even have those sub-conscious commands MAKE YOU drink rotten milk to poison you so I could profit out of the secret Two Million Euro insurance policy I took out on you with ME as the beneficiary! Do that enough times and I could retire and BUY the Playboy Mansion WITH the models as part of the deal!
....AND.....
I could make microcode software that injects itself and hides in the 32 kilobyte caches of automobile microcontrollers which are ALWAYS kept alive by the thin trickle of car battery power. That cache based software then turns on the brakes OR the accelerator within your post-2010 era drive-by-wire vehicles as my cache-based software intercepts data from various car sensors sensors and on-the-fly changes their values when they redirect to the destination microcontroller! I could make you drive into a river or or off the cliff and collect on some insurance money!
SOFTWARE CAN DO ANYTHING !!!!!!!
BEWARE THE SOFTWARE YOU CANNOT SEE and DO NOT KNOW ABOUT !!!
This is all about "THE UNKNOWN UNKNOWNS" --- Evil people creating malicious code that can wreck havoc against YOU and your loved ones is but a mere few days or weeks worth of coding and injecting into your VULNERABLE devices and systems. Even a TOASTER can be compromised these days! Then again WHO CAN YOU TRUST?
Apple?
Microsoft?
Oracle?
Me?
You don't NEED to regulate software -- BUT YOU DO NEED TO EVALUATE IT! And that means FULLY OPEN SOURCE CODE that industry experts from a WIDE variety of backgrounds that BOTH are paid AND do volunteer their time to review and bring to the public light their intended and ACTUAL function.
Even COMPILERS and INTERPRETERS can be compromised SO AGAIN ---- Keep ALL software in ANY critical system OPEN FOR PUBLIC and INDUSTRY REVIEW !!!
V
Apple's argument is that the software "weaponizes powerful state-sponsored spyware against those who seek to make the world a better place."
Is that meant to imply that _Apple_ "seek to make the world a better place"? I thought their only motivation was to make more money, just like NSO.
While NSO does seem to be guilty of selling Pegasus to "the wrong places", surely that's something arms manufacturers have been doing since time immemorial.
If Steve Jobs were alive, Apple would have AI to do with as he liked.
Now though has Apple AI to do with as AI like.
And that may or may not be Advanced or Artificial or Augmented and Alien Intelligence for IntelAIgent Appled Applications/Core Promotions and Vital Projects.
And for that one doesn't need the Wealth of an Apple or an Alphabet Organisation to Function and Flourish/Flower and Seed for such Autonomously Generates ITs Own Feeds of Treasure to Share Everywhere Needed.
You might like to ask yourself if that is what is currently before you ..... and whether extant legacy systems would be self-destructively prone to trying to oppose and destroy rather than assist and reinforce it.
And what do you think might then befall such legacy systems whenever the former rather than the latter option is exercised?
* .... Such is Fundamentally Revolutionary Progress via Fait Accompli Roots to Boot. And maybe hard to believe is true in deed, indeed, but that is your problem to concede and overcome.
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