Apple says "the moment has not come to weaken encryption" in response to the Australian bill on access and assistance

Apple's position on privacy is clear: it will do its best to comply with law enforcement, but believes that creating a backdoor for its operating system is not a bad thing.

Today, Apple commented (via TechCrunch) on the Australian anti-encryption bill, noting that it is "dangerously ambiguous" and "alarming for all Australians".

To break it down, the bill in question is called Access and Assistance. This bill, if it becomes a law, forces technology companies operating in the country to help law enforcement and other intelligence services when they try to access to encrypted data. The Australian government has stated that encryption is "increasingly used by terrorist groups and organized criminals to prevent detection and disruption."

Of course, many – including Apple CEO Tim Cook – say that privacy is a fundamental human right and that adopting such a law would undermine cybersecurity.

Not surprisingly, Apple's position has not changed. It is said that "it would be wrong to weaken the security of millions of law-abiding customers to investigate the very small number of people who pose a threat."

Apple said it appreciated the fact that the government is turning to it and other companies, but "the unfortunate fact is that the bill remains dangerously ambiguous with respect to encryption and security."

The company even says that reducing security and protecting privacy will push "criminals further away from the network" than take them. Apple says that "the moment has not come to weaken the encryption".

This is not the first time we have seen Apple take such a position. Two years ago, the FBI argued that Apple needed to create a tool to bypass the encryption set up by iOS. They were actually asking Apple to create a backdoor in its operating systems so that the FBI could access it. Of course, it was when we discovered that Apple would not create such a tool because it could be dangerous if we were in the wrong hands.

You can read the letter in full here.

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