Apple CEO defends resistance to FBI in unlocking iPhone

February 27, 2016 at 12:00a.m.

CUPERTINO, Calif.

Apple CEO Tim Cook got a standing ovation Friday at his first stockholder meeting since his company’s epic clash with the FBI unfolded. He defended the company’s unbending stance by saying: “These are the right things to do.”

On Thursday, the tech giant formally challenged a court order to help the FBI unlock an encrypted iPhone used by a murderous extremist in San Bernardino, Calif.

Federal officials have said they’re asking only for narrow assistance in bypassing some of the phone’s security features. But Apple contends the order would force it to write a software program that would make other iPhones vulnerable to hacking by authorities or criminals in the future.

Major tech companies are rallying to Apple’s cause, and now plan a joint “friend of the court” brief on its behalf. Facebook said it will join with Google, Twitter and Microsoft on a joint court filing. A Twitter spokeswoman confirmed that plan, but said that different companies and trade associations likely will file “multiple” briefs.

Evenflo recalls 56,000 child seats for harness problem

DETROIT

Evenflo is recalling more than 56,000 child safety seats because curious children can loosen the internal harness, increasing the risk of injury in a crash.

The recall covers Transitions Three-in-One Combination Booster Seats made from Dec. 18, 2014, through Jan. 29, 2016. The company says in government documents that the central front adjuster button that loosens the harness may be within a child’s reach. If the harness doesn’t fit snugly, that increases the chance of injury.

Evenflo says the problem affects the seats only when they’re used as forward- facing harnessed boosters.

The company says no injuries have been reported.

Evenflo is notifying owners and will send a kit with a new seat pad and front adjuster assembly.

Zuckerberg in Germany vows to fight hate speech

BERLIN

Mark Zuckerberg conceded Friday that Facebook didn’t do enough until recently to police hate speech on the social media site in Germany, but said it has made progress and has heard the message “loud and clear.”

German authorities, concerned about racist abuse being posted on Facebook and other social networks as the country deals with an influx of hundreds of thousands of migrants, have been pressing social media sites for months to crack down.

The Facebook CEO talked personally about the issue in September with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and met her chief of staff during a visit to Germany this week. The Merkel meeting “really highlighted how much more we needed to do in this country,” he said at a town-hall event in Berlin.

Associated Press