While the FBI claims that a “backdoor” created by Apple to access the San Bernadino shooter’s phone would only be used in this one circumstance, The Wall Street Journal reports there are at least 12 other cases where the U.S. Department of Justice is pursuing Apple for data from iPhones.
None of those investigations have been made public, but sources said they are similar in that prosecutors are attempting to compel Apple to bypass the security code feature. The other cases don’t involve terrorism charges, and many are also different in that they involve older phones than the iPhone 5c involved in the San Bernadino case.
The DOJ has been after Apple to break into iPhones long before the current spat with the FBI and scoffed at Apple’s defense last week, calling its opposition to the FBI’s request a “marketing strategy.” Meanwhile more public figures are making their positions on the matter known.
The New York Times reports Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg sympathizes with Apple in its fight against the FBI, while Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates told Bloomberg that he thinks the case should be decided in the courts. [via Reuters]
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