Social network operator Facebook on Thursday came out in support of Apple’s decision to oppose a court ruling that ordered it to help the FBI break into the iPhone of a California shooter, Reuters reports.
Facebook backs Apple on iPhone unlock
STEPANAKERT, FEBRUARY 19, ARTSAKHPRESS: “We will continue to fight aggressively against requirements for companies to weaken the security of their systems. These demands would create a chilling precedent and obstruct companies' efforts to secure their products,” a Facebook representative said.
A court order demanding that Apple help the US government unlock the encrypted iPhone of one of the San Bernardino shooters is shaping up as a crucial test case of how far the government can go in forcing technology companies to help security and intelligence investigations.
Law enforcement agencies have for years faced off against tech firms and privacy advocates over their ability to monitor digital communications, and the government to date has largely lost the battle.
But the specific circumstances of the San Bernardino case, a young married couple who sympathised with Islamic State militants and killed 14 people and wounded 22 others in a shooting rampage at a holiday party, could give government officials the legal precedent they need to reverse the tide.
A federal judge in Los Angeles on Tuesday ordered Apple to provide "reasonable technical assistance" to investigators seeking to read the data on an iPhone 5C that had been used by Rizwan Farook, who along with his wife, Tashfeen Malik, carried out the shootings.
