CEO Tim Cook on Tuesday brought Apple's dispute with the FBI to the public. Cook penned an open letter explaining the company's resistance to a federal magistrate's order to create software that would let authorities access data in an iPhone used by the shooters in last year's San Bernardino terrorist attack.
Carrying out the order could undermine the security of all iPhone users, Cook argued.
"The United States government has demanded that Apple take an unprecedented step which threatens the security of our customers. We oppose this order, which has implications far beyond the legal case at hand," he wrote.
Apple has complied with the FBI's request for information regarding Syed Farook's iPhone, having provided all of the data in the company's possession, according to Cook's letter.
The problem surrounds the FBI's request that Apple provide a "back door" to the iPhone's encrypted data, something Cook said is "too dangerous to create."
"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. In the wrong hands, this software -- which does not exist today -- would have the potential to unlock any iPhone in someone's physical possession," Cook said.
Even though the FBI promised that the custom software would be used only in the San Bernardino investigation, Apple is concerned that it might be leaked or used later. That could undermine encryption for millions of other users, according to the letter.
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