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Comment by steven2012 | Hacker News Reader

steven2012

I would prefer one from Apple. I don't trust Google as much as I do Apple, simply because I know they don't make money from my data. The fact that the FBI couldn't get into an iPhone makes me trust Apple much more. If I start using this Google key, I'm not sure how far in bed they are with the government and if they can crack my accounts.

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I would prefer one from Apple as well, but mostly because my laptop (which was built by Apple) only has USB-C ports, so carrying an USB-A adapter, like the one shown in the picture [1], would be a deal breaker for me and many others. Something like the YubiKey 4C Nano [2] would be good.

[1] https://i.imgur.com/79ojvAK.jpg

[2] https://www.yubico.com/product/yubikey-4-series/#yubikey-4c-...

If you're clever about it, you can do U2F using the secure enclave built into touchID. You don't even need a separate device.

I’ve been interested in setting something like this up. Are you aware of software that exists for it already?

Isn't it incredibly risky to leave it in-port? If the laptop is stolen, the thief also gets all your logins...

If someone has physical access, isn't it considered compromised anyway?

If it gets stolen, and the thief is actually trying to take over your accounts, then the process of proving that you are the rightful owner is probably easier if you have the key than if the thief has both the laptop and the key.

> The fact that the FBI couldn't get into an iPhone

You sure about that?

1. FBI unlocks iPhone without Apple's help

2. Snowden documents show 100% success rate against iPhones

3. Graykey device to break into iPhones

[1] https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/03/28/472192080...

[2] https://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2013/12/30/the-nsa-rep...

[3] https://blog.malwarebytes.com/security-world/2018/03/graykey...

And here they are. Every time. Without fail. Without any data to backup FUD. The Apple fanbois. The Google haters.

We don't know if or when the FBI will be able to crack iPhones. There are news (maybe fake) on the internet about a machine that can be plugged into iPhones and dump data from it, and that machine is only sold to thieves or gov agencies.

When you look at the recent clashes with Google and the gov, for example stopped military project or Trump accusing Google of political bias, it doesn't seem Google is "in the same bed" than the gov.

To me, both Apple and Google are good trustable and competent entities. They both have high standards. I personally trust Google more about data security, but I guess everyone is different.

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