---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Half of the devices that we encounter in…"
description: "\"Half of the devices that we encounter in terrorism cases, in counterintelligence cases, in gang cases, in child pornography cases, cannot be opened wit..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/446/james-comey-17512_big-problem_half-of-the-devices-that-we-encounter-in_2907182.jpg"
---

#  Half of the devices that we encounter in terrorism cases…

![“Half of the devices that we encounter in terrorism cases, in counterintelligence cases, in gang cases, in child pornography cases, cannot be opened with any technique. That is a big problem. And so the shadow continues to fall.” quote by James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/446/james-comey-17512_big-problem_half-of-the-devices-that-we-encounter-in_2907182.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/446/james-comey-17512_big-problem_half-of-the-devices-that-we-encounter-in_2907182.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/446/james-comey-17512_big-problem_half-of-the-devices-that-we-encounter-in_2907182.jpg)

> “Half of the devices that we encounter in terrorism cases, in counterintelligence cases, in gang cases, in child pornography cases, cannot be opened with any technique. That is a big problem. And so the shadow continues to fall.”

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Many devices in criminal investigations cannot be opened, creating a persistent investigative blind spot.

**In simple terms:** Unopenable devices hinder investigations.

Key Takeaway

Invest in new forensic technologies.

Themes

security crime technology

Mood

concerned serious

Type

policy technical

When to use this quote

- law enforcement
- cybercrime
- child protection

Key Concepts

forensics encryption

Questions to Reflect On

- What technologies could close this gap?
- How to balance privacy and security?

A Different Perspective

Legal and ethical constraints limit invasive techniques.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Pornography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pornography/) [Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem/) [Shadow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shadow/) [Terrorism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrorism/)

## Related quotes

> [In our counterterrorism cases and our counterintelligence cases, we can issue all kinds of - of layers of approval in the FBI, a national…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/in-our-counterterrorism-cases-and-our-counterintelligence-cases-we/)

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

> [“Your problem is that your shadow is a bit - how should I put it? Faint. I thought this the first time I laid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/your-problem-is-that-your-shadow-is-a-bit-how-should-i-put-it-faint-i/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [“Marilynn...passed out black cases to everyone. I opened mine to find an iPad inside. Several candidates whistled. Despite my agitated state, it impressed me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/priya-ardis/marilynn-passed-out-black-cases-to-everyone-i-opened-mine-to-find-an/)

[Priya Ardis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/priya-ardis/)

> [We prosecuted two of the biggest terrorism cases in the world and stopped Fort Dix from being attacked by six American radicalized Muslims from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-christie/we-prosecuted-two-of-the-biggest-terrorism-cases-in-the-world-and/)

[Chris Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-christie/)

> [I do have a very, very big problem with someone who saw me coming and exploited me as a mascot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stella-vine/i-do-have-a-very-very-big-problem-with-someone-who-saw-me-coming-and/)

[Stella Vine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stella-vine/)

> [The big problem is just this kind of gigantic piece, of kids reading less and liking it less and so getting worse at it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-scieszka/the-big-problem-is-just-this-kind-of-gigantic-piece-of-kids-reading/)

[Jon Scieszka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-scieszka/)

> [“answer. Donald’s dysfunctional belief was related to Janine’s, but he’d held on to it for much longer—a life of responsible and successful work should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-burnett/answer-donald-s-dysfunctional-belief-was-related-to-janine-s-but-he-d/)

[Bill Burnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-burnett/)

> [Its a big problem for American movies that all their movies are produced to be global.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/its-a-big-problem-for-american-movies-that-all-their-movies-are/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [It was lonely on the hill, and cold. And all you could do was keep going. You could scream, cry, and stamp your feet,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/it-was-lonely-on-the-hill-and-cold-and-all-you-could-do-was-keep/)

[Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/)

> [The big problem retailers are facing is the world is moving to mobile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-schulman/the-big-problem-retailers-are-facing-is-the-world-is-moving-to-mobile/)

[Dan Schulman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-schulman/)

> [Don't be pretentious is my first advice to young writers. This is the big problem - just because you're getting an MFA doesn't mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/don-t-be-pretentious-is-my-first-advice-to-young-writers-this-is-the/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [Nerves are always a big problem for me, which is why I loved doing American sitcoms. Because you know when you do the take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cleese/nerves-are-always-a-big-problem-for-me-which-is-why-i-loved-doing/)

[John Cleese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cleese/)

> [“For me -- for pretty much every writer -- the big problem isn't piracy, it's obscurity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cory-doctorow/for-me-for-pretty-much-every-writer-the-big-problem-isn-t-piracy-it-s/)

[Cory Doctorow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cory-doctorow/)

> [The big problem for comic art is you don't want to overwork it. If a drawing is overworked it isn't funny. It's the spontaneity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-sorel/the-big-problem-for-comic-art-is-you-don-t-want-to-overwork-it-if-a/)

[Edward Sorel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-sorel/)

> [My mom had very low expectations for me, and she really had a point. I was a big problem at seventeen. If I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/my-mom-had-very-low-expectations-for-me-and-she-really-had-a-point-i/)

[Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/)

## More by James Comey

> [Really bad people around the world, because of the genius of American innovation, use our products and infrastructure for their emails, for their communications.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/really-bad-people-around-the-world-because-of-the-genius-of-american/)

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

> [There are two things that matter in a criminal investigation of a subject.What did the person do, and when they did that thing, what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/there-are-two-things-that-matter-in-a-criminal-investigation-of-a/)

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

> [In my view, a huge portion of WikiLeaks's activities has nothing to do with legitimate newsgathering, informing the public, commenting on important public controversies,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/in-my-view-a-huge-portion-of-wikileaks-s-activities-has-nothing-to-do/)

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

> [There are those who've been hacked by the Chinese and those who don't know they've been hacked by the Chinese.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/there-are-those-who-ve-been-hacked-by-the-chinese-and-those-who-don-t/)

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

> [The lawyers doing the sorting for Secretary Clinton in 2014 did not individually read the content of all of her e-mails, as we did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/the-lawyers-doing-the-sorting-for-secretary-clinton-in-2014-did-not/)

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

> [The FBI also discovered several thousand work-related e-mails that were not in the group of 30,000 that were returned by Secretary Clinton to State…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/the-fbi-also-discovered-several-thousand-work-related-e-mails-that/)

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

> [WikiLeaks is a important focus of our attention.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/wikileaks-is-a-important-focus-of-our-attention/)

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

> [We did not find direct evidence that Secretary Clinton’s personal e-mail domain, in its various configurations since 2009, was successfully hacked. But, given the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/we-did-not-find-direct-evidence-that-secretary-clinton-s-personal-e/)

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

> [It is a little bit difficult to talk about things that do involve classified matters in public. But I think the public needs to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/it-is-a-little-bit-difficult-to-talk-about-things-that-do-involve/)

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

> [The more able we are to keep guns out the hand so criminals and spouse abusers all - the better. So the more information…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/the-more-able-we-are-to-keep-guns-out-the-hand-so-criminals-and/)

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

> [Secretary Hillary Clinton used several different servers and administrators of those servers during her four years at the State Department. She also used numerous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/secretary-hillary-clinton-used-several-different-servers-and/)

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

> [What we want to work with manufacturers on is to figure out how can we accommodate both interests in a sensible way? How can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/what-we-want-to-work-with-manufacturers-on-is-to-figure-out-how-can/)

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

> [I believe that Americans should be deeply skeptical of government power. You cannot trust people in power. The founders knew that. That's why they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/i-believe-that-americans-should-be-deeply-skeptical-of-government/)

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

> [In their minds, the murderers and accomplices of Germany, and Poland, and Hungary, and so many, many other places didn't do something evil. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/in-their-minds-the-murderers-and-accomplices-of-germany-and-poland/)

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

> [What we do is we combine information collected from any lawful source in a single FBI database so we don't miss a dot when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/what-we-do-is-we-combine-information-collected-from-any-lawful-source/)

[James Comey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

[Explore all 37 James Comey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/)

## More Big problem quotes

> [My mom had very low expectations for me, and she really had a point. I was a big problem at seventeen. If I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/my-mom-had-very-low-expectations-for-me-and-she-really-had-a-point-i/)

[Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/)

> [The big problem for comic art is you don't want to overwork it. If a drawing is overworked it isn't funny. It's the spontaneity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-sorel/the-big-problem-for-comic-art-is-you-don-t-want-to-overwork-it-if-a/)

[Edward Sorel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-sorel/)

> [“For me -- for pretty much every writer -- the big problem isn't piracy, it's obscurity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cory-doctorow/for-me-for-pretty-much-every-writer-the-big-problem-isn-t-piracy-it-s/)

[Cory Doctorow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cory-doctorow/)

> [Nerves are always a big problem for me, which is why I loved doing American sitcoms. Because you know when you do the take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cleese/nerves-are-always-a-big-problem-for-me-which-is-why-i-loved-doing/)

[John Cleese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cleese/)

> [Don't be pretentious is my first advice to young writers. This is the big problem - just because you're getting an MFA doesn't mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/don-t-be-pretentious-is-my-first-advice-to-young-writers-this-is-the/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [The big problem retailers are facing is the world is moving to mobile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-schulman/the-big-problem-retailers-are-facing-is-the-world-is-moving-to-mobile/)

[Dan Schulman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-schulman/)

> [It was lonely on the hill, and cold. And all you could do was keep going. You could scream, cry, and stamp your feet,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/it-was-lonely-on-the-hill-and-cold-and-all-you-could-do-was-keep/)

[Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/)

> [Its a big problem for American movies that all their movies are produced to be global.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/its-a-big-problem-for-american-movies-that-all-their-movies-are/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“answer. Donald’s dysfunctional belief was related to Janine’s, but he’d held on to it for much longer—a life of responsible and successful work should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-burnett/answer-donald-s-dysfunctional-belief-was-related-to-janine-s-but-he-d/)

[Bill Burnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-burnett/)

> [The big problem is just this kind of gigantic piece, of kids reading less and liking it less and so getting worse at it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-scieszka/the-big-problem-is-just-this-kind-of-gigantic-piece-of-kids-reading/)

[Jon Scieszka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-scieszka/)

> [I do have a very, very big problem with someone who saw me coming and exploited me as a mascot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stella-vine/i-do-have-a-very-very-big-problem-with-someone-who-saw-me-coming-and/)

[Stella Vine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stella-vine/)

> [Don't tell GOD that u have a Big Problem,Tell your Problem that u have a Big GOD.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/don-t-tell-god-that-u-have-a-big-problem-tell-your-problem-that-u/)

[Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/)

> [We're facing growing climate change, more floods, more droughts, more crisis on a planetary level, and the systems we put in place in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/we-re-facing-growing-climate-change-more-floods-more-droughts-more/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [“That's my big problem. That's it! Before the Arrival,guys like Evan Walker never looked twice at me, much less shot wild game for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/that-s-my-big-problem-that-s-it-before-the-arrival-guys-like-evan/)

[Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/)

> [Well, capitalism is a big problem, because with capitalism you're just going to keep buying and selling things until there's nothing else to buy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/well-capitalism-is-a-big-problem-because-with-capitalism-you-re-just/)

[Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/)

Browse all 430 Big problem quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Half of the devices that we encounter in terrorism cases, in counterintelligence cases, in gang cases, in child pornography cases, cannot be opened with any technique. That is a big problem. And so the shadow continues to fall.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "James Comey"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/half-of-the-devices-that-we-encounter-in-terrorism-cases-in/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Big problem"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/half-of-the-devices-that-we-encounter-in-terrorism-cases-in/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/446/james-comey-17512_big-problem_half-of-the-devices-that-we-encounter-in_2907182.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/446/james-comey-17512_big-problem_half-of-the-devices-that-we-encounter-in_2907182.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/446/james-comey-17512_big-problem_half-of-the-devices-that-we-encounter-in_2907182.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Half of the devices that we encounter in terrorism cases, in counterintelligence cases, in gang cases, in…” — James Comey",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "James Comey",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-comey/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Half of the devices that we...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/half-of-the-devices-that-we-encounter-in-terrorism-cases-in/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-comey/half-of-the-devices-that-we-encounter-in-terrorism-cases-in/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
