Senator Dianne Feinstein revealed the FBI spent $900,000 in its effort to unlock the iPhone of San Bernardino terrorist Syed Rizwan Farook.
Senator Dianne Feinstein, who acts as the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, revealed the figure on Wednesday “while questioning [FBI Director James] Comey at a Senate Judiciary Committee oversight hearing,” according to Engadget. The figure is less than the previously estimated figure of $1.3 million.
“I was so struck when San Bernardino happened and you made overtures to allow that device to be opened, and then the FBI had to spend $900,000 to hack it open,” said Feinstein during the hearing, revealing the number spent on accessing the iPhone. “And as I subsequently learned of some of the reason for it, there were good reasons to get into that device.”
The FBI has previously refused to reveal how much was spent on unlocking the phone and has also kept the details on who opened it classified.
“In early 2016, Apple was embroiled in a battle with the FBI over privacy, specifically whether it could (or would) crack an iPhone 5C following the San Bernardino terrorist attack,” Engadget explained. “Apple refused to specifically create a backdoor piece of software that would circumvent the security protections built into iOS, citing concerns for the privacy of the other millions of people out there using iPhones and iPads. Ultimately, it became a moot point: the FBI purchased software to crack the iPhone in question.”
Charlie Nash is a reporter for Breitbart Tech. You can follow him on Twitter @MrNashington or like his page at Facebook.