FBI is asking Apple to help unlock two iPhones that investigators think were owned by the man accused in last month's shooting attack at a Florida naval air station that killed 3 people.
A spokesman for Apple on Monday pointed to a letter the company sent to its customers during the legal battle over the San Bernardino phone. It said complying with the FBI's demand would require producing a new version of the iPhone operating system. If that software fell into the wrong hands, it"would have the potential to unlock any iPhone in someone's physical possession."
A law enforcement official said there's an additional problem with one of the iPhones thought to belong to Alshamrani, who was killed by a deputy: He apparently fired a round into the phone, further complicating efforts to unlock it. Another official said Alshamrani, a member of the Saudi air force who was taking flight training, apparently acted alone but cautioned that the investigation is not complete.Attorney General William Barr said last month in an interview with NBC News that the Pensacola shooting"appeared to be" an act of terrorism, but officials have not yet formally offered any conclusion.
According to the letter, the iPhones were sent to the FBI's crime lab in Quantico, Virginia."We stand ready from a logistical standpoint to do whatever is needed of us to work with Apple in effectuating the court's order," it said.Pete Williams is an NBC News correspondent who covers the Justice Department and the Supreme Court, based in Washington.
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