California Senator Chastises Apple for Refusal to Unlock Phone

Sen. Dianne Feinstein is working on legislation with Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr, R-N.C., that would require companies to unlock data under court order.

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(TNS) -- U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein said Apple is wrong to refuse to cooperate with the federal government to help unlock an iPhone used by terrorists in the San Bernardino massacre. Speaking at a Public Policy Institute of California event in Sacramento on Friday, Feinstein said Apple is making a mistake by deciding privacy rights trump national security.

“Apple is not above the laws of the United States, nor should anyone or any company be above the laws,” the Democrat from California said. “To have a court warrant granted, and Apple say they are still not going to cooperate is really wrong.”

A federal judge granted a court order compelling Apple to create specialized software to unlock the iPhone of San Bernardino shooter Syed Rizwan Farook. The phone, Feinstein noted, belongs to the County of San Bernardino, where Farook worked, and the county has agreed to have the phone searched.

Feinstein is working on legislation with Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr, R-N.C., that would require companies to unlock data under court order. The bill faces significant bipartisan opposition, including from Rep. Zoe Lofgren, the San Jose Democrat who represents Silicon Valley, who argue the government’s demand is an unprecedented overreach.

Privacy experts say if Apple writes a program to break into Farook’s phone, it can be used by hackers looking to steal private photos, messages or financial data of people.

“Specifically, the FBI wants us to make a new version of the iPhone operating system, circumventing several important security features, and install it on an iPhone recovered during the investigation,” wrote Apple CEO Tim Cook in a letter to customers. “In the wrong hands, this software — which does not exist today — would have the potential to unlock any iPhone in someone’s physical possession.”

Feinstein said her time on the Intelligence Committee has colored her view of the issue. She said she spends a great deal of time reading intelligence documents and that she keeps photos in a folder on her desk as reminders of how dangerous terrorist groups like ISIS are. The first photo in that folder is of a 6-year-old girl in plaid dress, white tights and Mary Jane shoes. She's laying on her back and her head is cut off, Feinstein said.

“I can tell you it is a very dangerous world,” she said. “I can tell you there is a war going on without a war being declared.”

Feinstein said the iPhone could hold the key as to whether the San Bernardino terrorists were “lone wolves” or “whether they were part of some cell planted here developing here with more people connected.”

The fight over encryption-protected smartphone data has been heating up in recent weeks, with lawmakers across the country debating whether investigators should have the ability to unscramble data on smartphones in criminal cases. California Assemblyman Jim Cooper, D-Elk Grove (Sacramento County), introduced legislation to weaken encryption, which he said would help law enforcement gain critical evidence in human trafficking and child pornography cases.

“You reach a point, and I can say I've reached this point, where I have to protect the people of this country,” Feinstein said Friday. “I really do. I took an oath of office to do that. Do it within the Constitution, do it within the law. I think I understand Apple's motivations, but I think it's a mistake.”

©2016 the San Francisco Chronicle Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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