Apple likely can’t force FBI to disclose how it got data from seized iPhone

The US government isn't saying whether it will divulge to Apple the method it used to access the locked iPhone seized by one of the San Bernardino (CA) shooters. The iPhone has been at the center of a bitter dispute between Apple and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. But that legal battle—in which a judge last month had ordered Apple to write code to assist the authorities in unlocking the phone—came to a seemingly abrupt halt when the government said it "successfully accessed the data" on the phone without Apple's assistance. A federal law enforcement official requesting anonymity said that the US government would not discuss whether it would reveal the method. "We cannot comment on the possibility of future disclosures to Apple," the law enforcement official said. Just a week ago, Apple said that it would insist in court on knowing everything about the vulnerability.