Apple opposes judge’s ruling on ‘backdoor’ to terrorist’s iPhone

A judge in Los Angeles, California ordered Apple on Tuesday to help the FBI break the encryption on the iPhone 5 of Syed Farook, who along with his wife carried out the mass shooting in San Bernardino, California. The encryption is preventing investigators from gaining access to his messages, contacts and other data. Apple has five days to appeal. The trial and the ruling have drawn much attention amid a bitter dispute between US intelligence services and private companies over encryption and the right to privacy.
In a letter issued following the judge's decision, Apple CEO Tim Cook expressed opposition to the ruling that he said "threatens the security of our customers." He said he believes the FBI has pure motives but that the government had asked Apple to build "a backdoor to the iPhone" that he called "something we simply do not have, and something we consider too dangerous to create."          
He added that "Once created, the technique could be used over and over again, on any number of devices. In the physical world, it would be the equivalent of a master key, capable of opening hundreds of millions of locks — from restaurants and banks to stores and homes. No reasonable person would find that acceptable."