Friday, March 11

Obama weighs in on Apple v. FBI: “You can’t take an absolutist view”

Our view from press row. (credit: Sam Machkovech)

AUSTIN, Texas—In his keynote address at the 2016 South By Southwest conference, President Barack Obama responded directly to a question about cybersecurity in light of the ongoing Apple v. FBI case with answers that appeared to favor the American government's current position. President Obama even called out Edward Snowden's disclosure of classified documents in 2013.

When asked by moderator and Texas Tribune founder Evan Smith where he came down on the question of digital-device privacy versus national security, President Obama began his response by saying, "I can't comment on that specific case." Yet the President's lengthy response revolved around that case's core issues of encryption to a point that it appeared unmistakably related.

President Obama began his response by reminding the audience that law enforcement agencies can obtain a warrant, show up on a citizen's doorstep, and "rifle through your underwear to see if there's evidence of wrongdoing"—and they've been able to do so well before smartphones were invented.

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