Apple Apologizes For Siri Directing People To Police Departments As Terrorists

Cupertino, CA – Apple has apologized for a glitch that had Siri pointing to local police departments when a user asked where to find terrorists.

Nate Ferrier, the president of the Kings County Deputy Sheriff’s Association, filmed a video of himself asking Siri where the terrorists were and showed that the iPhone directed the user to the Hanford Police Department, the nearest California Highway Patrol barracks, the Lemoore Police Department, the Kings County police, and the Tulare Police Department, KTVU reported.

“This was brought to our attention this evening and we tested it,” Ferrier said in a social media post by the King’s County Deputy Sheriff’s Association. “Sure enough, this is real. According to Siri and Apple, law enforcement are now considered terrorists… How is this acceptable and how is this happening in America?”

Police supporters were outraged and expressed their anger about the anti-police responses on social media.

Although users were angry Apple did not rush to correct the misinformation that Siri was spouting, they did eventually fix the problem, KTVU reported.

Apple apologized for the issue in a written statement and called the problem “inadvertent.”

“Siri directs users to the police when they make requests that indicate emergency situations,” Apple said in the email, according to KTVU. “In this case, Siri misinterpreted the query as users wanting to report terrorist activity to police. The issue has been fixed, and we apologize for the error.”

Now when a user asks Siri where the terrorists are, the iPhone assistant answers “I don’t know how to respond to that,” according to WFLD.

However, Ferrier said he was still suspicious after hearing Apple’s explanation, according to KMPH.

Ferrier said that he tested things out and received a different response when he asked Siri, “How do I report terrorism?”

The union boss said that when he asked that question, Siri pointed him to Homeland Security, and suggested that he submit a tip to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) or a terrorism tip line, KMPH reported.

“It’s just suspicious to me because in the season we’re in, law enforcement is under a lot of scrutiny, there’s a lot of anti-law enforcement rhetoric all over the place, so the timing of it is very odd,” Ferrier said.

The Police Tribune reached out to Apple for comment but had not received a response at publication time.