Cybersecurity

Apple Wins in Brooklyn Battle Over Unlocking iPhone

  • Judge says Apple may refuse to help U.S. in encryption fight
  • Ruling splits with California court favoring prosecutors

Apple Wins in Brooklyn Court Over Unlocking iPhone

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Apple Inc. won a pivotal clash with the U.S. over privacy rights, with a Brooklyn judge ruling that the company doesn’t have to help unlock a drug dealer’s iPhone.

For months, Apple has rebuffed U.S. requests that it assist investigators seeking to crack into encrypted iPhones. The battle burst into public after a California judge this month ordered the company to aid prosecutors seeking access a terrorist’s phone, but by then Apple had spent months in a Brooklyn court fighting over the drug dealer’s device.