Apple Has Been Issued A Search Warrant to Unlock Texas Killer's iPhone
Apple has been served a search warrant to unlock the data that law enforcers need to get from Texas gunman Devin Patrick Kelley, who killed 26 people a couple of weeks ago. In the crime scene, local police recovered two phones, one of which is an iPhone SE.
According to reports, the Federal Bureau of Investigation failed to reach out to Apple within the 48-hour period during which it would have been possible to unlock the iPhone with Kelley's fingerprint on the Touch ID. Consequently, law enforcement has argued that encryption is hindering the process of investigation. A person familiar with the matter revealed that Apple was issued a warrant to access iCloud content and another, a more general warrant was issued to access the phone.
Previously, Apple has already issued a statement on such matters, which involved a mass shooting in San Bernardino, California back in 2015.
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"The FBI may use different words to describe this tool, but make no mistake: Building a version of iOS that bypasses security in this way would undeniably create a backdoor. And while the government may argue that its use would be limited to this case, there is no way to guarantee such control," Apple's chief executive officer Tim Cook said in a statement after the San Bernardino shooting.
The aftermath of the incident ended in a bitter spat between the FBI and Apple, but this time, the latter seems to be more cooperative. However, Apple has confirmed that a few days after the press conference held by the FBI, law enforcement has yet to reach out for technical assistance, which it could have provided at the onset of the evidence. The FBI also refused to initially reveal what phone was recovered from the Texas crime scene, before reports confirmed that it was indeed an iPhone.
Apple has yet to respond to comment, but more details are expected in the coming weeks.
