THE BAIS HAVAAD HALACHA JOURNAL: Volume 5776 Issue XXII Vayakhel- Shabbos Shekalim FBI vs. Apple Is there a halachic mandate to guard private information? By: Rabbi Yosef Fund, Posek at the Bais HaVaad

Public Interest vs. Privacy As the world of technology and personal computing evolves at breakneck speed, so do the issues surrounding its proper usage. One of the major issues currently under fire is the right to privacy. This issue was previously brought to light in 2013, with Edward Snowden’s release of private data to the public forum. The current debate stems from the December 2015 terrorist attack in San Bernardino, CA, which took the lives of fourteen people. The terrorists, Syed Farook and his wife, had smashed their personal phones and removed the hard drive from their computers. But Syed Farook had an iPhone 5C which was given to him by his employers. The phone is now government property, since Farook was a public employee. However, the FBI is unable to access the phone, since it is set to automatically erase itself after ten wrong passcodes are entered. This security restriction is built into the phone’s operating system. Apple does issue regular updates for their software. The FBI has requested that Apple issue an update for this specific phone, which would allow them to bypass the extra security features. The FBI’s request has ignited a storm of controversy in the world of information technology.