Mr Cook has swung back at allegations made by many members of the United States Congress that Apple is deliberately shielding around $74 billion in overseas revenue from the clutches of the US. Apple keeps a majority its revenues in overseas markets such as Ireland, where the corporate taxation rate of 12.5 per cent pales in comparison to the 35 per cent that the company's profits would be subjected to in the US. However, as the company does not reinvest its profits in foreign markets, the scheme has been labeled by some as a mechanism of tax evasion.
'Total political crap'
However, Mr Cook shut down the allegations against Apple this week, labeling the chatter in Congress as 'total political crap' and insisting that the company pays 'every tax dollar [Apple] owes' in the US.
'I'd love to bring [the revenues] home, but don't because it would cost me 40 per cent to bring it home and I don't think it's a reasonable thing to do', said Mr Cook of Apple's overseas cash reserves, adding that around two-thirds of the company's revenues are generated in international markets.
Mr Cook also defended Apple's policy by criticising the current structure of corporate taxation in the US, describing existing regulation as unfit for modern companies. 'This is a tax code that was made for the Industrial Age, not the Digital Age', he argued, placing the blame for missed tax dollars on inefficient tax regulation and legislation rather than evasive corporate practices. 'It's backward. It's bad for America.'
Defending Encryption
During the interview, which was aired as part of the CBS '60 Minutes on Sunday' program, the Apple chief also reiterated his stance on data encryption, arguing that lawmakers and politicians have created a false dichotomy between personal privacy and national security. Recently, US President Barack Obama called on tech companies to 'make it harder for terrorists to use technology to escape from justice' by loosening their encryption systems and policies.
While Mr Cook has maintained that Apple would cooperate in providing personal data in instances where law enforcement officials possess a warrant, the company has resisted suggestions that tech companies should build backdoor pathways into their devices which would allow law enforcement agencies to access encrypted personal data and communications. To build in such pathways would be to create an access route to personal data not only for law enforcement agencies but also for criminal actors, Mr Cook suggests, thus damaging the security of Apple devices. Sources: Inferse; ITProPortal
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