Apple is facing escalating demands from the U.S. Justice Department ( DOJ ) to assist authorities investigating the deadly shot at a naval airbase in Pensacola , Florida , last month , which is now being treat as an act of terrorist act .
At a mechanical press league on Monday , Attorney General William P. Barr supply a public supplication for Apple to help unlock an iPhone belonging to the suspect , Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani , a 2nd lieutenant in the Royal Saudi Air Force , who was enter in a preparation programme at the airbase in former December when he allegedly killed three people and wounded eight others .
“ We call on Apple and other technology companies to help oneself us feel a result so that we can better protect the lives of Americans and prevent succeeding attacks , ” Barr sound out .
US Attorney General, William Barr (L), and FBI Deputy Director David Bowdich (R) hold a press conference, regarding the December 2019 shooting at the Pensacola Naval air station in Florida, at the Department of Justice in Washington, DC on 17 February 2025.Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds (Getty
https://gizmodo.com/fbi-asks-apple-to-unlock-iphone-of-suspect-in-pensacola-1840853181
Barr ’s appeal follows last week ’s news that FBI General Counsel Dana Boentewrote to Appleand requested its assistance in unlocking the defendant ’s iPhone , which is protect by firm encryption . Apple has tell it already bring home the bacon the FBI with “ all of the data ” in its possession relate to Alshamrani .
DOJ announced Monday that the 21 - year - old suspected shooter was motivated by “ jihadist political orientation , ” informing its decisiveness to consider the incident an act of act of terrorism .
It was antecedently reported that now - deleted societal culture medium posts ascribed to Alshamrani were critical of U.S. support for Israel and painted the U.S. as anti - Moslem .
The Pentagon say it had ejected21 other Saudi military studentsfrom the U.S. , abduce anti - American content on social media . Barr enjoin newsperson that in some font the students had “ some kind of tangency with kid pornography . ”
Barr said Monday that at some point during the attack , Alshamrani fire a single round into one of his earphone in what may have been an attempt to destroy evidence . A 2d speech sound recovered from the scene was also damaged .
Apple did not yet respond to Gizmodo ’s request for comment .
The FBI has long debate that strong consumer encryption intervene with law enforcement ’s ability to tuck grounds in the wake of such attack , a job it calls “ going coloured . ” Federal lawgiver supporting the FBI ’s place have call on Apple to make a “ back doorway ” into the devices .
Apple , which has increasinglymarketed itselfas a protector of user privacy , tell the iPhone is design in such a way that not even the company can bypass its encryption . Apple CEO Tim Cook has allege publicly he believes there ’s no way to yield law of nature enforcement particular access to its devices “ without crap it well-situated for the bad guys to break out in . ”
notable cryptographers , including Johns Hopkins associate professor Matthew Green , havesided with Applepublicly , insist any endeavor to weaken encoding solution available to consumer will only aid criminal drudge who seek the same access as the FBI .
The FBI antecedently sought a court order aspire at forcing Apple to unlock the cellphone of another terror suspect — Syed Rizwan Farook , the deceased shooter in the December 2015 flack in San Bernardino , California . It finally paid a secret security measures fellowship — reportedly Israeli firm Cellebrite — to unlock the gimmick .
Senator Ron Wyden , a leading privateness hawk in Congress , has criticized the FBI over its repeated attempts to compel Apple ’s cooperation .
In a 2017 alphabetic character to FBI Director Chris Wray , Wyden wrote : “ Regardless of whether the [ FBI ] labels vulnerability by design a backdoor , a front door , or a ‘ secure gold key , ’ it is a blemished insurance that would harm American security , autonomy , and our economy . ”
Update , 5:50pm : Senator Ron Wyden , who is cited above previously criticize the FBI ’s arguments for outfitting consumer devices like iPhones with encryption backdoors , sent Gizmodo the following command about Attorney General Barr ’s remarks :
“ Someone accused of serious ethics infraction for rubber - stamp an illegal mass surveillance program is the last person who should be calling for government backdoors into every Americans ’ speech sound . If William Barr and Donald Trump succeed in weakening encryption with a back door , they ’ll also make it far loose for criminal and cyberpunk and predators to get into the digital life of you and your family unit . If there were a backdoor in American phones , terrorists and malefactor would surely stir to foreign encryption overhaul outside the reach of American law of nature enforcement . ”
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