US Court Ordered Google To Help Agents Crack Phones

After Apple, Google is ordered by the court to help Federal agents in extracting data from phones

Google has once again been ordered to allow federal agents crack phones, according to court records in 7 states, which indicates that Apple is not the only tech company facing demands by the government in the middle of harsh discussion between security and privacy.

The American Civil Liberties Union has found 63 examples where the US government pursued a court ruling under 1789 law known as the ‘All Writs Act’ to force Google and Apple to assist them pull data from locked phones.

The result of those cases is not clear. Nevertheless, federal prosecutors said until late 2015, when the smartphone maker started to resist such efforts, judges used to favor such appeals from federal prosecutors. Those requests are not a new phenomenon as the cases began to file in 2008.

Information of those cases came days after the Department of Justice (DoJ) announced that it unlocked a terrorist’s phone, ending a high-profile legal battle to determine whether Apple can be compelled by a court order to assist the FBI in violating the passcode safety system of the phone.

The overall figures are not surprising, since federal prosecutors have earlier stated Apple assisted in similar cases over 70 times. Majority, but not each of the 63 cases, which the ACLU identified involved Apple.

Figures provide the first accounting of how the American government has sought such rulings for the US search engine developer to help agents pull data from locked smartphones, usually by having the organization reset the passwords of the devices.

The All Writs Act’s language is expansive, empowering federal courts with extensive authority to force others to do as they say. Authorities have most often used it to help it in cases involving technology beyond control.

The Department of Justice has protected the practice of receiving court orders to force assistance from tech companies on a routine basis, including essential part of law enforcement where no other means can be used by investigators to access a phone of a suspect that may hold significant criminal evidence.

Privacy groups claim that the government misuses an outdated rule to claim authority, which has not been provided by Congress. In February 2016, a court filing from Apple indicated that the DoJ pursues such orders involving Tim Cook’s company in least 12 active cases.

In Google’s case, a 2015 drug investigation in California, prosecutors attained a court judgment influencing Google to offer assistance in extracting data from two cellphones. Both phones were using Android OS.