The US Department of Justice has been locked in a legal battle with Apple, which has refused to allow the FBI to access the attacker`s encrypted phone, arguing that such a move would compromise the security of all Apple phones. The attacker`s iPhone is locked due to a security feature that disables the phone and encrypts data stored on it following 10 failed password attempts.
"There was a mistake made in that 24 hours after the attack, where the county at the FBI’s request took steps that made it impossible later to cause the phone to back up to the iCloud," Comey said during a congressional hearing on the issue, as quoted by The Wall Street Journal.
According to the FBI director, a significant amount of data could have been recovered from the phone had it been connected to the attacker`s home Wi-Fi system. However, a dispute with Apple would still be unavoidable due to more data being needed from the phone, he added.
On December 2, an Islamic couple — US-born Syed Rizwan Farook and his Pakistani wife Tashfeen Malik — attacked the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, killing 14 people and injuring more than two dozen.
On February 16, a California judge ordered Apple to help the FBI to break into Farook`s phone despite Apple`s resistance. Later, a New York court contradicted the ruling and denied a request from a New York prosecutor for access to a phone in a drug case.
FBI admits mistake in San Bernardino attacker`s iPhone access case
02 March 2016
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The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) made a mistake in accessing the San Bernardino attacker`s iPhone within a day following December`s deadly terrorist attack, FBI Director James Comey said Wednesday.
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