>>>This obsession with "privacy" is a contemporary mania that probably can be traced back to some of the crazy things J Edgar Hoover and Nixon's crowd did.
>>>Nevertheless, it's a whacky mania.
>
>IMHO government secrecy is very different from personal privacy.
>
>Unless you were so foolish as to write "Banking PIN" in your little black book along with verbatim emails to/from your lawyers about an upcoming court case that could break you financially, or inserted favorite samples of those nude selfies you like to take(!) then there's no comparison between a smartphone and a little black book IMHO.
>
>Seems to me that when Apple acquiesces, it confirms to every hacker in the world that it's possible.
Can there possibly be a doubt that it's possible?
John, you're a developer.
How would you test a security system that you couldn't reset?


>>but loss of privacy over anything in your device is more dangerous than carrying wads of cash and probably is a more immediate threat today.


Really?
Try walking thru downtown Trenton waving fistfuls of cash and see what happens.





After which it's only a matter of time before a Julian Assange reveals the method or legions of hackers figure it out and publish. I used to say that only health detriments from wireless can slow the personal device movement-