Apple cites that it’s “impossible” to unlock iPhones running iOS 8 or later for authorities

The legal/encryption squabble continues.

On Wednesday, Apple, representing itself in a New York court, took sides regarding backdoor access to iPhone encryption and stated that the company could not unlock iPhones running iOS 8 or higher even if it wanted to.

Apple called the request to access an encrypted iPhone “impossible to perform” on more than 90 percent of devices running iOS 8 and up.

It comes down to firmware, as iOS 8 implemented new default data encryption in response to the NSA’s widespread monitoring programs and said in 2014 that as of the release the company could no longer circumvent the lock.

While 90 percent of the devices in question, Apple did state that it could unlock the remaining ten percent that are still using “old” systems but urged the judge to avoid forcing Apple to comply with the Justice Department’s request.

The next hearing is set for later this week, but it’s likely this debate will drag on, the government pushing tech companies to add a ‘golden key’ for government access to data.

Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.

Via The Next Web