Apple CEO Tim Cook says the iPhone is a deeply personal device that holds private information, and no one should have access to that but you.
Cook, kind of unexpectedly, addressed the company's ongoing battle with the FBI over encryption at the Apple March 21 event where the company unveiled its latest products along with company updates.
"We built the iPhone for you, our customers," Cook said Monday. "And we know that it is a deeply personal device. For many of us, the iPhone is an extension of ourselves."
Apple has been at odds with the FBI since the tragic shooting in San Bernardino, Calif. last year. The FBI wishes to access information from Syed Farook’s iPhone, claiming Apple must cooperate and allow investigators to access the phone and gain valuable information related to Farook's terrorist ties.
Cook and Apple, however, have said the FBI is essentially asking Apple to create a backdoor for its iOS built-in encryption that would render that same encryption useless. Cook has often used the analogy of creating a key for one home in a neighborhood that then could be used to unlock the keys to every home in a neighborhood.
"We did not expect to be in this position, at odds with our own government," Cook said Monday "We believe strongly that we have (a) responsibility to help you protect your data and protect your privacy. We owe it to our customers and owe it to our country."
Apple is currently challenging a judge's ruling that it must comply with the FBI.
"This is an issue that impacts all of us and we will not shrink form this responsibility," Cook said as he ended his brief statement on the issue.
