Case Analysis: The FBI Vs. Apple
Current Event Analysis: The FBI vs. Apple
A current event in need of ethical examination is the dispute between Apple and the FBI over the unlocking of a criminal’s iPhone. Following the mass shooting in San Bernardino that took the lives of many individuals in early December 2015, the FBI turned to the shooter’s personal iPhone data for evidence, however, were unable to bypass Apple’s security measures on their own (Lichtblau & Benner, 2016). Unwilling to compromise the security of data, and quite frankly the trust of customers, Apple did not respond favorably when the FBI reached out to the tech giant for help in breaking into the phone (Lichtblau & Benner, 2016). According to Lichtblau and Benner (2016), Apple CEO, Jeff Cook maintains that …show more content…
To implement this tool, the FBI must engage in the following steps: understand the facts surrounding the case, become aware of its competing roles and values, examine all alternatives and their consequences, reflect on how the choice of alternative will affect its managers personally, and anticipate how the agency will justify its alternative choice to the public (Cooper, 2012). The FBI’s dedication to moral creativity (Cooper, 2012) is already being demonstrated by its willingness to continue to explore additional avenues to breaking into the suspect’s iPhone without asking Apple to compromise its own encryption software. Additionally, as public servants, members of the FBI working on this case are “juggler[s] managing a multitude of competing obligations and interests” (Cooper, 2012, p. 256). It is not hard to imagine the pull of conflict members of the FBI must feel between upsetting Apple and citizens who might feel their privacy is at risk and the duty to do everything possible to help prevent future acts of terror on American soil, even if it means forcing Apple to unlock a citizen’s personal iPhone. Being a responsible administrator is a tough burden to carry because it means weighing available options of a public problem and often having to select one that is going to be displeasing to some. In this case, members of the FBI must wrestle with their “ethical …show more content…
(2016) FBI may be able to crack iPhone without Apple’s help. Market Watch. Retrieved from: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/fbi-may-be-able-to-crack-iphone-without-apples-help-2016-03-21
Cooper, T. L. (2012). The responsible administrator: An approach to ethics for the administrative role. San Francisco, CA: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Goldman, D., & Wattles, J. (2016). Apple says complying with FBI will hurt everyone but terrorists. Cnn Money. Retrieved from:http://money.cnn.com/2016/03/01/technology/apple-fbi-hearing/
Lichtblau, E., & Benner, K. (2016). Apple fights order to unlock san bernardino gunman’s iPhone. The New York Times. Retrieved from:
A current event in need of ethical examination is the dispute between Apple and the FBI over the unlocking of a criminal’s iPhone. Following the mass shooting in San Bernardino that took the lives of many individuals in early December 2015, the FBI turned to the shooter’s personal iPhone data for evidence, however, were unable to bypass Apple’s security measures on their own (Lichtblau & Benner, 2016). Unwilling to compromise the security of data, and quite frankly the trust of customers, Apple did not respond favorably when the FBI reached out to the tech giant for help in breaking into the phone (Lichtblau & Benner, 2016). According to Lichtblau and Benner (2016), Apple CEO, Jeff Cook maintains that …show more content…
To implement this tool, the FBI must engage in the following steps: understand the facts surrounding the case, become aware of its competing roles and values, examine all alternatives and their consequences, reflect on how the choice of alternative will affect its managers personally, and anticipate how the agency will justify its alternative choice to the public (Cooper, 2012). The FBI’s dedication to moral creativity (Cooper, 2012) is already being demonstrated by its willingness to continue to explore additional avenues to breaking into the suspect’s iPhone without asking Apple to compromise its own encryption software. Additionally, as public servants, members of the FBI working on this case are “juggler[s] managing a multitude of competing obligations and interests” (Cooper, 2012, p. 256). It is not hard to imagine the pull of conflict members of the FBI must feel between upsetting Apple and citizens who might feel their privacy is at risk and the duty to do everything possible to help prevent future acts of terror on American soil, even if it means forcing Apple to unlock a citizen’s personal iPhone. Being a responsible administrator is a tough burden to carry because it means weighing available options of a public problem and often having to select one that is going to be displeasing to some. In this case, members of the FBI must wrestle with their “ethical …show more content…
(2016) FBI may be able to crack iPhone without Apple’s help. Market Watch. Retrieved from: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/fbi-may-be-able-to-crack-iphone-without-apples-help-2016-03-21
Cooper, T. L. (2012). The responsible administrator: An approach to ethics for the administrative role. San Francisco, CA: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Goldman, D., & Wattles, J. (2016). Apple says complying with FBI will hurt everyone but terrorists. Cnn Money. Retrieved from:http://money.cnn.com/2016/03/01/technology/apple-fbi-hearing/
Lichtblau, E., & Benner, K. (2016). Apple fights order to unlock san bernardino gunman’s iPhone. The New York Times. Retrieved from: