Despite being ordered by the court, Apple is refusing to unlock the iPhone belonging to the terrorist of the San Bernardino shootings. The company claims that this will set a dangerous precedent, although the FBI’s director claims that it won’t. Right now things appear to be at a standstill, but that could change soon.
A report from Associated Press (via Cult of Mac) has indicated that Apple might appeal to Congress to step in and weigh in on the matter, and basically have them decide whether or not Apple should indeed comply with the court’s orders. It is believed that Apple thinks that Congress might side with them as they have spent $5 million lobbying Congress back in 2015.
However it seems that this could be a gamble on Apple’s part. Should they lose, Congress could very well pass a law that will require all manufacturers to include backdoors, whereas in this case, Apple would only need to provide backdoor access to just one iPhone (or maybe more if the reports are true).
Right now Apple’s strategy involves their lead attorney Theodore J. Boutrous Jr. argue that the US government is improperly using the 1789 All Writs Act, a law which law enforcement agencies have used in the past to get companies to cooperate with investigations.
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