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Attorney General asks Apple to unlock naval base shooter's iPhones
Attorney General William Barr has joined the FBI in asking Apple to unlock two iPhones belonging to the man who attacked a naval base in Pensacola, Florida, in December. Barr also declared the shooting "an act of terrorism." Apple has given investigators details from Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani's iCloud account, but it rejected a plea from the FBI to unlock the phones. The company has claimed complying with such a request could set a precedent that may compel it to unlock a device whenever a federal agency asks it to. The Justice Department wants access to Alshamrani's phones so it can view encrypted messages on apps such as WhatsApp and Signal. It's hoping to determine whether he was acting alone or if others knew of his plans. Barr noted that both phones were damaged in the attack, but said FBI crime lab experts were able to make them operational. The attorney general claimed at a press conference Monday Apple "has not given us any substantive assistance" when it came to unlocking the devices. "This situation perfectly illustrates why it is critical that investigators be able to get access to digital evidence once they have obtained a court order based on probable cause," he said. "We call on Apple and other technology companies to help us find a solution so that we can better protect the lives of Americans and prevent future attacks."
DOJ asks Facebook to halt end-to-end encryption plans (updated)
The Department of Justice is set to ask Facebook to pause plans for end-to-end encryption across all of its messaging services. It will urge the company not to move forward "without ensuring that there is no reduction to user safety."
