FBI sought iPhone order before exhausting options: US inspector general

FILE PHOTO: An attendee uses a new iPhone X during a presentation for the media in Beijing, China October 31, 2017. REUTERS/Thomas Peter

WASHINGTON: The Federal Bureau of Investigation did not exhaust possible solutions to unlock an iPhone connected to a gunman involved in a late-2015 shooting spree before seeking a court order to compel Apple Inc to help access the device, a US Justice Department internal watchdog said on March 27.

The conclusion may pose challenges for the Trump administration in possible future litigation to force companies to help crack into encrypted devices. Senior US officials have sought in recent months to revive a debate over whether encryption on devices should be weakened to allow law enforcement easier access to data belonging to criminal suspects.