ShortList is supported by you, our amazing readers. When you click through the links on our site and make a purchase we may earn a commission. Learn more

The FBI has told US congress how it hacked an iPhone

And they're not going to tell Apple any time soon

The FBI has told US congress how it hacked an iPhone
07 April 2016

How Apple would have loved to have been a fly on the wall (or a tiny drone bug) at this meeting.

The FBI has debriefed US senator Dianne Feinstein how it broke into the iPhone 5C belonging to terrorist suspect Syed Farook - the phone at the centre of a lengthy legal battle between FBI and Apple

The office of Feinstein, vice chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, has told tech site CNet that she has been given details by the FBI of how it hacked into the locked iPhone - a procedure even Apple themselves are in the dark on.

Apple has requested that the FBI reveal how it broke into Farook's handset, in order to make their future devices more secure. The FBI has so far denied access to this information, and Feinstein isn't about to help them: she told US publication National Journal that "I don't be­lieve the gov­ern­ment has any ob­lig­a­tion to Apple. No com­pany or in­di­vidu­al is above the law, and I'm dis­mayed that any­one would re­fuse to help the gov­ern­ment in a ma­jor ter­ror­ism in­vest­ig­a­tion."

The news arrives in the same week that the White House has suggested it won't be backing new legal measures giving judges the power to force tech companies to co-operate with law enforcement groups over the hacking of encrypted data. 

For more on the Apple hack and how to keep your own data safe, read this