Apple Patents Kill Switch for Mobile Devices Because: “Covert Police or Government Operations May

Via: United States Patent 8,254,902:
As wireless devices such as cellular telephones, pagers, personal media devices and smartphones become ubiquitous, more and more people are carrying these devices in various social and professional settings. The result is that these wireless devices can often annoy, frustrate, and even threaten people in sensitive venues.
…Covert police or government operations may require complete “blackout” conditions.

Looks like the powers that be don't want us communicating during certain crisis situations i.e. Iran, Syria, hurricane Sandy. This is draconian.

newyork.cbslocal.com...

We could be like North Korea with the flip of a switch. And what if someone hacks into this technology?

first rule of war is to take out communications..just sayin

reply to post by vonclod


You are absolutely right, and now that they made sure everyone uses the same type of communication it will be much easier to shut it down. The flip of a switch.

reply to post by devildogUSMC

I think Obamacare was going to require a similar function for heartbeats that are too loud.

What would be an appropriate condition to cause a complete blackout of civilian communications?

Someone will figure out a hack/crack to make that feature not work. People are already offering tens of thousands of dollars to hack Apple's new fingerprint scanner.

reply to post by devildogUSMC


If they kill as in shut down, does that mean cameras and audio recording?

Just another reason to boycott procudts with the "bit out of the apple" logo.
If price doesn't justify doycotting bitten fruit labeled products, then their complicity in police state operations should.
As for me if it's a bitten fruit product or a "windows" product it's just not going to be in my toolkit.
I've had it with backdoors, secutiry holes and obver prices bitten fruit logo productgs.
Long live open source (for as long as it lasts unfettered).

ganjoa

reply to post by devildogUSMC


Didn't that happen during the Boston Scam Marathon?

I could swear some events or crisis, plural, that has happened here on US soil, they had black outs.

If I'm wrong, I will apologize ahead of time, but I don't think I'm wrong.

reply to post by PRS395


I'm not sure about that. I am sure that something like that could happen and will happen one day though.