「We have no sympathy for terrorists. While we believe the FBI』s intentions are good, it would be wrong for the government to force us to build a backdoor into our products. And ultimately, we fear that this demand would undermine the very freedoms and liberty our government is meant to protect.」
5. 2月17日，Apple CEO Tim Cook發出公開信（Customer Letter）。
6. FBI在周五向法院再次提出一次強制申請（motion to compel，原文：https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/2716011/Apple-iPhone-Access-M。OTION-to-COMPEL.pdf ），其中反駁一些Cook公開信中的內容。
The FBI worked with San Bernardino County to reset the iCloud password on December 6th, as the county owned the account and was able to reset the password in order to provide immediate access to the iCloud backup data FBI和當地政府一起在12月6日重置了iCloud密碼，因為當地政府持有手機並且成功重置了密碼，為了能夠及時獲取iCloud備份數據。 The reset does not impact Apple』s ability to assist with the the court order under the All Writs Act. The government』s objective was, and still is, to extract as much evidence as possible from the phone. 這次重置並不會影響Apple遵守法院命令[破解手機]的能力。美國政府的目的過去是，現在還是，從手機中獲取盡量多的數據。
12. 2月22日早上，Apple CEO Tim Cook給員工發了一個備忘錄，重申公司的立場。 Team, Last week we asked our customers and people across the United States to join a public dialogue about important issues facing our country. In the week since that letter, I』ve been grateful for the thought and discussion we』ve heard and read, as well as the outpouring of support we』ve received from across America. As individuals and as a company, we have no tolerance or sympathy for terrorists. When they commit unspeakable acts like the tragic attacks in San Bernardino, we work to help the authorities pursue justice for the victims. And that』s exactly what we did. This case is about much more than a single phone or a single investigation, so when we received the government』s order we knew we had to speak out. At stake is the data security of hundreds of millions of law-abiding people, and setting a dangerous precedent that threatens everyone』s civil liberties. As you know, we use encryption to protect our customers — whose data is under siege. We work hard to improve security with every software release because the threats are becoming more frequent and more sophisticated all the time. Some advocates of the government』s order want us to roll back data protections to iOS 7, which we released in September 2013. Starting with iOS 8, we began encrypting data in a way that not even the iPhone itself can read without the user』s passcode, so if it is lost or stolen, our personal data, conversations, financial and health information are far more secure. We all know that turning back the clock on that progress would be a terrible idea. Our fellow citizens know it, too. Over the past week I』ve received messages from thousands of people in all 50 states, and the overwhelming majority are writing to voice their strong support. One email was from a 13-year-old app developer who thanked us for standing up for 「all future generations.」 And a 30-year Army veteran told me, 「Like my freedom, I will always consider my privacy as a treasure.」 I』ve also heard from many of you and I am especially grateful for your support. Many people still have questions about the case and we want to make sure they understand the facts. So today we are posting answers on http://apple.com/customer-letter/answers/ to provide more information on this issue. I encourage you to read them. Apple is a uniquely American company. It does not feel right to be on the opposite side of the government in a case centering on the freedoms and liberties that government is meant to protect. Our country has always been strongest when we come together. We feel the best way forward would be for the government to withdraw its demands under the All Writs Act and, as some in Congress have proposed, form a commission or other panel of experts on intelligence, technology and civil liberties to discuss the implications for law enforcement, national security, privacy and personal freedoms. Apple would gladly participate in such an effort. People trust Apple to keep their data safe, and that data is an increasingly important part of everyone』s lives. You do an incredible job protecting them with the features we design into our products. Thank you.
政府要求 Apple 破解自己的用戶，損害發展了幾十年的安全技術。面對經驗豐富的黑客和網路犯罪威脅，正是這些技術在保護著我們的用戶——包括數千萬的美國公民。我們的工程師致力於在 iPhone 中構建更強力的加密體系來保護用戶，然而諷刺的是，同樣一批工程師現在卻被命令削弱這些保護，並將我們的用戶置於危險中。
從無任何一家美國公司被迫將其客戶置於更大的風險中。多年來，密碼學家和國家安全專家都在反對削弱加密。這樣做會傷害那些善意和守法的公民，他們依賴於像 Apple 這樣的公司保護他們的數據。相反的，罪犯和惡意用戶卻仍將使用他們的工具加密他們的信息。
庫克幹得漂亮！他這次的表態，最直接的好處是在廣大用戶和潛在用戶中宣傳了蘋果的價值觀，即對用戶的體驗和安全的無上重視，在與谷歌微軟的競爭中又不知道高到哪裡去了。最新的消息是谷歌的CEO發推支持蘋果 Google CEO Calls FBI"s Request for Apple Backdoor "A Troubling Precedent"。
在此背景下，FBI等部門獲得了前所未有的權力。已經慢慢打破了傳統美國政治分權體系下的check and balance規則。以反恐和安全的名義，其實這些執法部門以及背後的整個美國政府的權力範圍已經觸及任何普通美國人了。這次事件就是一個典型的例子。請注意FBI並不是要求蘋果解鎖那個恐怖分子的iPhone, 而是要求蘋果製作一個帶有後門的iOS系統。而有了這個後門系統的FBI, 這次可以用來暴力破解恐怖分子的手機，以後它還可以拿來做什麼事情呢？這就是庫克公開信中核心的擔憂，引用原文「while the government may argue that its (backdoor iOS) use would be limited to this case, there is no way to guarantee such control.」 說白了，絕對的，沒有制約的權力必然導致集權與腐敗。美國政治（相對的）清明的基礎是互相制衡的權力分割，而不是依靠偉人和道德。
當然這件事對蘋果也是有負面影響的。畢竟還是有人支持無限反恐的。例如共和黨熱門總統候選人Trump就在庫克公開信後第一時間表了態，不客氣的批評了蘋果，認為蘋果應該配合FBI反恐 Donald Trump: Apple should hack San Bernardino phone。考慮到他以反恐，反移民和反政治正確起家，他這樣表態也是很正常。正好今年要舉行總統大選，這件事對本來已經亂成一鍋粥的選情又加了一份料。可以預見其他候選人都會要求對此事表明態度，而無論什麼態度，勢必會成為他們互相攻擊的一個新話題。
《美國愛國者法案》（USA PATRIOT Act）是2001年10月26日由美國總統喬治·沃克·布希簽署頒布的國會法案，正式的名稱為「Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001」，中文意義為「使用適當之手段來阻止或避免恐怖主義以團結並強化美國的法律」，取英文原名的首字縮寫簡稱為「USA PATRIOT Act」，而「patriot」也是英語中「愛國者」之意。 2015年5月30日，美國參議院沒有就延長本法案的決議達成一致意見，故本法案於6月1日起失效[1]；6月2日，作為對愛國者法案的代替，修改了部分內容，尤其是第215段，終止了NSA的電話監控的《美國自由法案（英語：USA Freedom Act）》在國會通過，效力至2019年。
