The FBI has been trying for the past 2 months to unlock the iPhone belonging to one of the San Bernardino shooters without any success, however it seems that they could be catching a break as a US federal judge has ordered Apple to unlock the iPhone by disabling the security feature that wipes the phone after 10 unsuccessful tries.However according to Apple, they said that even if they wanted to, they can’t because the feature can only be accessed after the phone has been unlocked, and since Apple doesn’t store the keys in their servers, it’s still a dead end. To that end, US Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym has asked Apple to write software that will bypass the security feature, which as pointed out by The Next Web, is basically asking Apple to create a backdoor to the iPhone.
This is something that Apple has been resisting very strongly in the US despite pressure from law enforcement officials. The next problem is that even if Apple were to comply, the FBI could take years to figure out the 6-digit alphanumeric password. No doubt that this case will set the precedent for future requests to unlock iPhones should Apple somehow lose the appeal the court’s decision.
In part of a statement published on Apple’s website by the company’s CEO Tim Cook, it reads, “While we believe the FBI’s intentions are good, it would be wrong for the government to force us to build a backdoor into our products. And ultimately, we fear that this demand would undermine the very freedoms and liberty our government is meant to protect.”
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