The Associated Press and other news organizations sued Friday to try to force the FBI to reveal the secret work-around agents used to get a look at the San Bernardino terrorist’s iPhone.
After a brief but fierce legal battle with Apple, maker of the iPhone, to try to get the company to unlock gunman Syed Farook’s phone, the FBI dropped the case and said it had found a work-around.
The FBI said it had contracted with a third-party vendor to crack the phone’s encryption.
The news organizations said that suggests a vulnerability in the iPhone that should be made public, and also said voters have a right to know how much was paid to the firm.
“The public interest in receiving this information is significant,” the organizations said in their court filing, made in Washington, D.C. “The tool sparked tremendous nationwide debate about both the proper balance between national security and privacy in personal communications, and the degree to which law enforcement should be empowered to compel access to encrypted and protected devices.”
The court case between the FBI and Apple had pioneered new ground in questions of terrorism investigations and civil liberties, and a court had initially ruled that Apple must assist the FBI in accessing the phone.
But by finding a third-party option, the Obama administration circumvented the case, the judge’s order to Apple was vacated, and the issues remain legally murky.
FBI Director James B. Comey has talked about some of the details of the tool, including saying it cost “a lot,” and talking about its potential use in other cases, including state and local law enforcement.
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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