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Comment by poolpool | Hacker News Reader

Apple literally cannot win in the media and the current security narrative. If they could/would remotely unlock or reset passwords people would freak out about lax security you could get around by purely faking a written and signed letter.

This sucks but is all this heartbreak and fighting with a company worth a 500 dollar toy? This whole thing is ridiculous.

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This sucks but is all this heartbreak and fighting with a company worth a 500 dollar toy?

You do understand that some people have to work full time for several months to save enough to buy that kind of "toy", right? Maybe you're lucky enough to be more wealthy than that, but many aren't. Not that the amount of money involved is even slightly the point here anyway.

In the US, a judge would likely have ordered Apple to unlock the device and then made them pay the estate's legal fees, since most states actually have laws requiring service providers (such as banks) to give the estate access to a decedent's property upon confirmed proof of death (i.e., a certified copy of the death certificate).

These US laws are generally based on UK estate laws, so it is highly unlikely that a court order would be required in the UK.

Really, for a multi-billion dollar with billions of dollars in profit each quarter, Apple's inability or unwillingness to perform an hour or two of basic legal research is shocking, especiallly considering that they are effectively demanding that the estate pay 500 pounds for access to a toy that likely cost 500 pounds.

> This sucks but is all this heartbreak and fighting with a company worth a 500 dollar toy? This whole thing is ridiculous.

A 500 dollar toy that could well contain photographs and other media from a recently departed that are not available elsewhere.

Yes, it probably is well worth the heartbreak and fighting.

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