In the gadget world, Apple’s security is legendary. Nothing comes out that isn’t supposed to; nothing ever leaks; the public remains entirely in the dark until the scheduled release date of Apple’s next groundbreaking gadget. Apple security is simply impenetrable.

Then again, the Titanic was also unsinkable.

We all know how that turned out.
I’m sure most of you know what I’m already referring to: on April 19th, Gizmodo released a detailed rundown of Apple’s new prototype 4G iPhone, which was not scheduled to be released to the public for several more months. According to reports, Apple employee Gray Powell was street testing the new 4G iPhone and accidentally left it in a bar on March 18th, where it was found by Brian Hogan. According to Gizmodo’s telling of the event, Brian found the Facebook application on the phone, discovered that Gray was still logged in, and attempted to contact him. After failing to get a hold of Gray and supposedly being dismissed by Apple representatives he’d contacted, Brian began shopping the prototype 4G iPhone around to various tech blogs. (Keep in mind all of this was relayed from Gizmodo’s slant – we have yet to see Brain’s telling of the tale.) He finally sold the phone to Gizmodo for 5,000 USD, who then cracked it open, took pictures and video, and posted the story on their website on April 19th, a month after the prototype iPhone was originally lost. It was only after the story was released that Apple’s legal division contacted Gizmodo via letter, asking for the return of the 4G iPhone.

What’s become of all this? Currently there are no lawsuits taking place; however, California prosecutors have searched the home of Gizmodo editor Jason Chen, citing two yet-unnamed “persons of interest” as the source of the probable cause needed to obtain the warrant. Brian has also lawyered up, admitting that he was indeed paid 5,000 big ones for the prototype iPhone but not telling whether his house was also searched.

For me, at least, this raises two pretty big questions. The first digs into the whole ethical aspect of the debacle. I don’t claim to know the exact legality of it all: I don’t know if it was illegal for Brian to sell the 4G iPhone, or for Gizmodo to purchase it, or for Gizmodo to put the review on their site well before the release date. I leave those questions to the lawyers: they went through seven years of college for a reason, after all. No, I question just what Brian was thinking. Trying to contact Gray via Facebook was a good move on his part; removing the phone from the bar, however, really was not. There’s a wonderful invention called a Lost and Found, where people who find lost objects turn them so that people who have misplaced their property can reclaim it. I’m fairly certain most bars and restaurants have one, given the tendency of intoxicated patrons to put their stuff down and forget about it.

It's brilliant! Brilliant! Genius, I tell you!
Why not leave the phone at the bar with the bartender, where its owner would likely come looking for it? Why not take one of a thousand other actions that don’t involve bringing the phone that you do not own home and selling it to the highest bidder?

Speaking of the highest bidder, I honestly can’t say I’m surprised that Gizmodo offered to buy the 4G iPhone. This is, after all, the same site whose parent company received a cease-and-desist letter from Apple in January after offering 50,000 USD for pictures or video of the yet-unreleased iPad and 100,000 USD for hands-on time with the gadget – which, at that point, would have had to have been stolen. Or lost in a bar and then sold. Take your pick.

While the story makes me wonder what on Earth happened to the ethical base of our society, I also have to question Apple’s security. Obviously it’s not impenetrable – any sanctioned field test comes with a certain amount of risk. For example, your device could be lost in a bar and resold for a comparatively small amount of cash to a tech blog.

Pretty much says it all.
Okay, I’m done beating that dead horse. Promise.

Of course, mistakes are made. Accidents do happen. The loss of the 4G iPhone was particularly bad in terms of security, but hey, nobody’s perfect. It may have prompted Apple to change a few things - possibly bump up the 4G iPhone release date by a few months - but, provided no large legal ramifications come of this, the backlash shouldn’t get any worse than it already is. After all, Apple has a habit of learning from its mistakes and the mistakes of competitors, and a mistake this widely publicized has likely provided a valuable lesson.

Which does not explain why a newer version of that same 4G iPhone prototype showed up in Vietnam this morning. There are also rumors of a third 4G iPhone prototype that made its way to China.

For a company whose security measures have been compared to those of the CIA, this is quite a ways for Apple to fall. I suppose we’ll all wait with bated breath to see the official explanation for this one. Either way, you can certainly bet that Apple is working overtime to plug its security leaks before the entire dam bursts.

So what do you guys think? Should Brian have acted differently upon finding the 4G iPhone? Was Gizmodo wrong to buy the iPhone prototype, or were they perfectly justified? What’s Apple going to do about all this? Let’s hear it!

Katherine

Deal of the Day: 10% off XBox 360 consoles and accessories. It's not Apple and it's not security related, but it sure is fun.