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Arizona’s Maricopa County takes Trump’s advice, boycotts iPhones over FBI battle

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Apple’s sales team must be seriously worried about this one.

Effective immediately, the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office will discontinue providing iPhones as option for replacements or upgrades for existing employees [over] Apple’s recent refusal to cooperate in unlocking an encrypted iPhone used by individuals involved in the recent San Bernardino shootings.

There are currently 564 smartphones deployed throughout the office, 366 of which are iPhones. 

It seems some are taking Donald Trump’s call to boycott Apple and iPhones seriously.

Via Engadget. Photo Maricopa County.

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Comments

  1. Iven Tenz (@ivenalot) - 8 years ago

    The amount of money IBM saves due to the change to Apple, I’m sure they’ll be back soon.

  2. Great. Buy Korean , Chinese or Russian brand phones instead. Maybe Trump will manufacture phones with his own logo. Maricopa county officials are idiots.

  3. Rom Capprotti - 8 years ago

    Poor Apple I hope they don’t go broke over those 366 phones that won’t be used in Joe piehole County

  4. PMZanetti - 8 years ago

    I want proof. Get cameras in the face of these people and see how far their “boycott” truly extends. I’m sure its total BS.

    BTW, what a mature and adult response too (boycott).

  5. Jozef Repka - 8 years ago

    It is nice to see, that not only in our country (Slovakia) live stupid people :-)

  6. Phoenix and its neighboring cities already have a bad reputation for being stupid and this certainly doesn’t help.

    I truly don’t understand the GOP. This was the party that sided with Cliven Bundy when the government came to collect a million dollar grazing fees bill and deiced to take up arms and point sniper rifles at federal officers and claimed “government overreach” as the reason for their protest. But now, because Trump said so, they’re boycotting a phone that wants to keep their information private and away from government’s prying eyes.

    But here’s what I’d love to ask these Maricopa County government workers: “Regardless of whether you’re guilty of anything, if your manager asked for your phone’s passcode to view your pictures, Facebook feed, banking app, etc, would you let them?”

    Yeah, I don’t think so either. So the idea that JUST because it’s a terrorist they’re suddenly on the side of the government. A government that most on the Right wants to be smaller, which means those government workers may be out of a job if the GOP has its way.

    What a crack squad of individuals we have working in that office. Yeah, I say “we” because I’m a citizen of one of Phoenix neighboring cities. Makes me want to hang my head in shame to even be associated with such mindless lemmings that’ll do anything Donald Trump says. The same person that said he could shoot someone in the middle of the street and not lose any voters.

    The worst part is that he’s right. I think The Donald could slap his supermodel, immigrant wife across the face on stage and the crowd would blame her while Trump’s poll numbers rise.

    Every day that passes the idea of this man becoming our next President scares the crap out of me.

  7. dcj001 - 8 years ago

    You can let this attorney’s office know what you think on Twitter @marcoattorney .

    • silverhawk1 - 8 years ago

      I emailed the County Attorney’s office that I’m a Apple investor I don’t appreciate his remarks. I ended that I will never spend my vacation dollars in Arizona. I truly enjoy Scottsdale, but never again.

  8. ottawamark - 8 years ago

    It’s Joe Arpaio. That guy is a freaking lunatic. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Arpaio

    • iamrefresh - 8 years ago

      OMMFG What a friction d-bag. Why is the FBI not investigating him? As of September 2015, cases involving Arpaio or his office have cost Maricopa County taxpayers $142 million in legal expenses, settlements and court awards. And elected Into office since 1993, WOW People there are stupid!

  9. Howie Isaacks - 8 years ago

    Piss on Maricopa County! They obviously don’t support individual liberty.

  10. viciosodiego - 8 years ago

    Typical trump supporter.

  11. givemethedaily - 8 years ago

    Soon to be article “Apple QUIT working with DOJ to help fight ISIS messaging and propaganda on social media due to Arizona’s Maricopa County boycott”. DOJ surprised by Maricopa County’s support for ISIS messaging and propaganda efforts.

  12. Edison Wrzosek - 8 years ago

    I’m truly speechless… Well, not really, but what I want to say would be censored here, so not saying it, but you know what I want to say…

    The lack of intelligence here is discombobulating!!!

  13. aerobat01 - 8 years ago

    Since Apple already sold the 366 phones there is no harm to Apple at this point. However, knowing how quickly Maricopa County adopts ‘New Technology’ the ‘iPhones’ the county refers to might actually be versions from 2007 so it probably has even less impact.

  14. André Hedegaard - 8 years ago

    Excellent!! This is great news! Finally someone standing alongside the FBI. Really, why the hell would you not want to help save lives. Shame on you Apple!

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Avatar for Ben Lovejoy Ben Lovejoy

Ben Lovejoy is a British technology writer and EU Editor for 9to5Mac. He’s known for his op-eds and diary pieces, exploring his experience of Apple products over time, for a more rounded review. He also writes fiction, with two technothriller novels, a couple of SF shorts and a rom-com!


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