Apple correct in fight with FBI, says husband of San Beardino survivor - CNET

Should Apple follow a court order asking it to unlock the contents of an iPhone used by one of the terrorists in the San Beardino shootings, or should it resist that order? Someone with a personal interest in the matter is supporting Apple.

In a friend-of-the-court brief sent to Judge Sheri Pym, Salihin Kondoker, the husband of Anies Kondoker, who was shot three times in the attack but lived, defended Apple's efforts to protect the information on the shooter's iPhone, Buzzfeed News reported on Monday. Kondoker said he didn't think it likely the phone holds any valuable information and that he supports Apple in the case.

The battle between Apple and the US govement points to the difficult balancing act involving privacy and national security. Apple and other tech players argue that encryption, which encodes data so it can't be accessed without the proper key, is needed to protect private information and communications. Law enforcement officials say such technology hampers their ability to investigate criminal and terrorist activity, and they've been leaning on companies to create methods that would allow for data access when necessary.

The Apple case revolves around the San Beardino massacre in December, in which 14 people died and 22 were injured. The FBI has been eager to get a look at the content of an iPhone 5C used by one of the terrorists to see if it reveals anything useful. But unlocking the phone would require Apple to build a custom version of its iOS software, which, Apple argues, would create a backdoor into not just this iPhone but into other iPhones as well.

In the brief sent to the court, Kondoker said that at first he was frustrated by Apple's opposition to the order, believing it to be another roadblock. But as he leaed more about the case, he said, he realized Apple is fighting for something more than just one phone.