Is Apple finally free from the legal battle filed by the U.S. government? Well, that's seemed to be the case after the Justice Department withdrew the lawsuit to compel the tech company to assist the authorities in the San Bernardino mass-shooting case investigation in December.
The government's decision to drop the case against Apple Inc. came on Monday after the Justice Department discovered a way to unlock an iPhone used by the San Bernardino mass-shooting suspect Syed Rizwan Farook without the help from the tech giant. According to Engadget, the court documents revealed that a third party had approached the FBI with an alternative way to get into the gunman's iPhone and they were able to successfully break Apple's encryption.
"The government has now successfully accessed the data stored on Farook's iPhone and therefore no longer requires the assistance from Apple Inc. mandated by Court's Order Compelling Apple Inc. to Assist Agents in Search dated February 16, 2016," the U.S. Department of Justice stated in its motion on Monday. "Accordingly, the government hereby requests that the Order Compelling Apple Inc. to Assist Agents in Search dated February 16, 2016 be vacated."
Despite the fact that the government has dropped its legal action against Apple, the iPhone unlocking done by a third party is now raising new uncertainties, especially about Apple devices' security strength, New York Times notes. The development also ignited the possibilities for new conflicts between the government and the tech firm regarding the method used to open the device and if the technique will be disclosed.
"This lawsuit may be over, but the Constitutional and privacy questions it raised are not," Congressman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), who had criticized the Justice Department's suit against Apple, said in a statement Monday, as per USA Today.
Since privacy and security issues could entail societal and financial implications, companies like Apple could face declining sales if smartphones and tablets are proven hackable. Hence, Apple sworn to seek information about the third party and the method used to hack into the San Bernardino suspect's iPhone.
