Can Apple Read the Content in Your iMessages?
The thought of Apple being able to read the content in iMessages has raised eyebrows for some time and speculation is on the rise. Apple has repeatedly denied these allegations, but Quarkslab, a research firm, is on a mission to prove them wrong.
Quarkslab researchers recently released new findings that Apple is technically able to eavesdrop on its users’ communications by decrypting messages. Their data confirms that conversations via iMessage and Face Time are encrypted end-to-end, but Apple ultimately controls their key infrastructure, putting them in a position to tamper with messages.
Previous discoveries have confirmed that iMessages and emails can be retrieved when backed up to iCloud, but this recent breakthrough puts a new spin on things. Apple’s ability to control encryption keys gives them the power to act as a man-in-the-middle, decoding messages from the sender to the recipient.
This also means the National Security Agency (NSA) or other law bureaus can intercept and monitor conversations a suspect may be having. Following the release of NSA’s PRISM surveillance program a few months back, Apple was the only company to step forward and publicly announce it is technically infeasible for them or another third-party to decrypt its encrypted data. Kudos to Apple for speaking up, but doing so put them in the spotlight and cryptography experts are stating otherwise.
The good news is, not your average Joe Schmoe can hijack your messages or Face Time conversations. Tapping into the iMessage infrastructure requires so much discipline that it is very likely only a firm such as the NSA could execute such a daunting task.
My intent is not to scare anyone or knock Apple. I’m just acting as “Your Digital Angel” with another subtle reminder to always be mindful of what you send and say on your portable devices and online. If you delete something from your phone, tablet or the internet, it doesn’t mean it’s gone forever. It’s likely stored somewhere and if your privacy is important to you, I wouldn’t recommend storing your iMessages on iCloud. In addition, you should always think twice before sexting … ask Anthony Weiner, he’ll tell you.
