What does the current court order requiring Apple Computer to assist the FBI by “hacking” into a criminal’s phone have to do with pharmacy? One word: privacy. More and more, our patients are using their “smart phones” to keep and store their health records. Apple even includes Health Kit in their core operating system on their phones, which allows the user to store and display many different types of protected health information (PHI) in what is essentially a mini electronic health record (EHR).
It appears that many are siding with the FBI in this case without fully understanding the legal ramifications of the case. If you are interested in why the FBI’s request is far more intrusive to your patients’ privacy, skip over to Zdziarski’s Blog of Things and read Apple, FBI, and the Burden of Forensic Methodology, an excellent summary description of the implications of this case. After reading it, consider how save any PHI stored on a phone would be if Apple loses this case.