Apple Tells US Judge It's Impossible' To Unlock New iPhones Thanks To Strong Encryption

Highlights

• Apple said it can't help authorities access iPhones running iOS 8 and 9
• This is due to strengthened encryption methods introduced in June 2014
• Apple told US Magistrate Judge James Orenstein that it could access the 10 per cent of its devices that continue to use older operating systems
• Tech giant will find out on Friday whether it will have to help with the case  

Apple told a US judge that accessing data stored on a locked iPhone running the latest software is impossible.

But the Californian firm said it has the ‘technical ability’ to help law enforcement agencies unlock older phones if needed.

Apple’s position came to light after a federal magistrate judge in Brooklyn, New York, sought Apple’s input as he weighed a US Justice Department request to force the company to help authorities access a seized iPhone.

‘Forcing Apple to extract data in this case, absent clear legal authority to do so, could threaten the trust between Apple and its customers and substantially tarnish the Apple brand,’ Apple's lawyers wrote.