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Apple to tell judge congress should decide iPhone hacking battle with FBI: Report

The company doesn't want the local court to decide.
Written by Jake Smith, Contributor

Apple will file legal papers later this week asking a federal judge to send its fight with the FBI over accessing a San Bernardino gunmen's locked iPhone to congress,.

Apple believes the legislature should make the decision instead of the local courts, reports the Associated Press.

Apple will argue the hack is illegal under the 1789 All Writs Act, which has been used to compel companies to provide assistance to law enforcement in investigations.

Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, told employees in a letter on Monday that the government doesn't have the legal capacity to gain access to the iPhone. Apple's lead counsel, Theodore Boutrous Jr, echoed this sentiment in an interview with the AP.

"The government is really seeking to push the courts to do what they haven't been able to persuade Congress to do," Boutrous said. "That's to give it more broad, sweeping authority to help the Department of Justice hack into devices, to have a backdoor into devices, and the law simply does not provide that authority."

Apple spent roughly $5 million lobbying Congress last year, dealing mainly with tax and copyright issues.

Federal agents have been trying to gain access to the iPhone since Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, killed 14 people and injured dozens in the shooting attack on December 2.

The FBI said it's unable to unlock the iPhone in question because it's locked with a passcode. Last week, a judge ruled Apple must provide "reasonable technical assistance" to help agents unlock the phone.

The company has garnered mass attention for publicly opposing the order.

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