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News orgs sue FBI to find out how San Bernardino iPhone was hacked

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Several news organizations including USA TodayVice and AP have filed a lawsuit against the FBI in an effort to learn more about who provided the tool that allowed the FBI to hack into the iPhone of one of the San Bernardino shooters.

“Through this action, the News Organizations seek to compel the FBI to provide records of the publicly-acknowledged business transaction that resulted in the purchase this March of the so-called iPhone access tool,” the lawsuit says. “The public interest in receiving this information is significant. The FBI’s purchase of this tool allowed government access to Mr. Farook’s phone, providing new information about one of the deadliest attacks on American soil in recent years, but also apparently failing to reveal any evidence of links between Mr. Farook and foreign terrorists or terrorist organization.”

The fear, which the lawsuit also discusses, is that the FBI went against privacy protocol in breaking into the iPhone. Apple publicly denied the FBI access and even, at points, said it wouldn’t be possible to provide a back door. The FBI was frustrated with Apple, believing that it wasn’t helping the agency to protect U.S. citizens in the event of terror attacks. Access to an iPhone, the FBI argued, would provide intelligence on who helped plan the attacks. Ultimately, the government organization looked elsewhere and found a way in.

As it turned out, and again as the lawsuit noted, there wasn’t much information on the iPhone at all. Therein lies part of the concern, and why the news outlets want the FBI to cough up details on who it purchased the tool from. Likewise, the tool shows “a serious undisclosed security vulnerability existed (and likely still exists) in one of the most popular consumer products in the world.” The suit suggests the current owner of the tool could release it to another party, perhaps one with nefarious intentions.

The lawsuit was filed after requests under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) were denied.


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