Apple's officially off the hook. 
 
 The US Department of Justice, with the help of a third party, has successfully accessed data on a phone used by a terrorist in December's attack in San Bernardino, California, the agency revealed in a court filing Monday. It said it no longer needs Apple's assistance in unlocking the iPhone 5C used by Syed Farook, and it has asked Riverside, California-based US Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym to vacate her order compelling Apple to assist in the case. 
 
 The move Monday ends the legal battle between Apple and the FBI in this particular case, but it doesn't end the overarching battle about privacy and security. There are hundreds of other iPhones that law enforcement agencies around the country want unlocked, opening Apple to potential litigation across the US. And the government's success at accessing data on the iPhone also raises some concerns about the security of Apple's devices. 
 
 "We sought an order compelling Apple to help unlock the phone to fulfill a solemn commitment to the victims of the San Bernardino shooting -- that we will not rest until we have fully pursued every investigative lead related to the vicious attack," Eileen M. Decker, US attorney for the Central District of California, said in a statement. "Although this step in the investigation is now complete, we will continue to explore every lead, and seek any appropriate legal process, to ensure our investigation collects all of the evidence related to this terrorist attack." 
 
 After the filing, Apple reiterated its belief that the FBI's demand for a backdoor was "wrong and would set a dangerous precedent" and said that "this case should never have been brought." 
 
 "Apple believes deeply that people in the United States and around the world deserve data protection, security and privacy," Apple said in a statement. "Sacrificing one for the other only puts people and countries at greater risk." 
 
 Last week, the Justice Department asked a judge to call off last Tuesday's hearing over whether Apple should have to make software that lets the FBI unlock an iPhone 5C connected to the San Bernardino attack. In a surprise revelation the day before the hearing, the government said an unnamed outside party had given investigators a method that might provide access to the phone's data. It wanted time to explore the alternative way to get into the iPhone. 
 
 Monday's move by the Justice Department ends the legal tussle between the tech titan and the government over a single iPhone, which has spun out into a broader debate with much more at stake. Technology companies and rights groups argue that strong encryption, which scrambles data so it can only be read by the right person, is needed to keep people safe and protect privacy. Law enforcement argues it can't fight crimes unless it has access to information on mobile devices. 
 
 Now playing: Watch this: FBI drops Apple court case after unlocking terrorist's... 
 
 Justice Department spokesman Marc Raimondi said Monday that "it remains a priority for the government to ensure that law enforcement can obtain crucial digital information to protect national security and public safety, either with cooperation from relevant parties, or through the court system when cooperation fails. We will continue to pursue all available options for this mission, including seeking the cooperation of manufacturers and relying upon the creativity of both the public and private sectors." 
 
 Monday's news raises questions about the security of Apple's devices and how the Justice Department was able to break into the phone. The FBI hasn't said what company it's working with or what method it used to access the data. Cellebrite, a privately held Israeli company that specializes in transferring and extracting data from phones, has been named in some reports as the third party helping the FBI unlock the iPhone, but neither the FBI nor Cellebrite has confirmed the reports. 
 
 A law enforcement official, speaking Monday with reporters on the condition of anonymity, declined to specify how the FBI got into the phone or what company helped it gain access. The official also declined to say whether the method works on other iPhones besides Farook's iPhone 5C, and it wouldn't say if the FBI would tell Apple about how it got into the phone. 
 
 "We cannot comment on the possibility of future disclosures to Apple," the official said. But the official, when asked about how the case will impact the government's relationship with Apple going forward, said the FBI's "goal is always to work cooperatively with Apple." 
 
 Still, if the FBI was able to hack into the iPhone 5C, it could mean other iPhones aren't as secure as believed. 
 
 "Although this averts the possibility of a further court decision that imperils Apple, it makes it clear that there is a security flaw in that generation of the OS," said Joshua Rich, a partner at Chicago-based law firm McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff. "Apple now will have to try to pinpoint the flaw and fix it -- most likely, without much help from the US government in showing how it got in. So while this resolution averts a crisis, it means Apple has more work to do." 
 
 Updated at 4 p.m. PT: Adds comments from law enforcement official. 
 
 Updated at 6:40 p.m. PT: With Apple's statement. 
 
 Apple Status report ||||| The Department of Justice on Monday filed to withdraw a legal action compelling Apple's assistance in unlocking an iPhone linked to last year's San Bernardino shootings, saying it successfully gained access to, and extracted data from, the target device. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 The Justice Department has moved to vacate a California court order compelling Apple provide aid in an ongoing FBI investigation into the San Bernardino shootings. With a working exploit, law enforcement agents no longer require help from the iPhone maker and cannot —or need to —assert the All Writs Act to force Apple's assistance."The government has now successfully accessed the data stored on Farook's iPhone and therefore no longer requires the assistance from Apple Inc. mandated by Court's Order Compelling Apple Inc. to Assist Agents in Search dated February 16, 2016," the government said in a court filing.An unnamed government official informed USA Today of the Justice Department's plans on Monday , more than one week before federal prosecutors in the case are due to update the court on the efficacy of a third-party unlock method presented earlier this month . Court reporter Dan Levine of Reuters confirmed the decision on Twitter."It remains a priority for the government to ensure that law enforcement can obtain crucial digital information to protect national security and public safety, either with cooperation from relevant parties, or through the court system when cooperation fails," said DOJ spokesperson Melanie Newman in a statement to BuzzFeed News. "We will continue to pursue all available options for this mission, including seeking the cooperation of manufacturers and relying upon the creativity of both the public and private sectors."Apple in February was ordered by a federal magistrate judge to comply with FBI demands for assistance in unlocking an iPhone tied to San Bernardino terror suspect Syed Rizwan Farook. The company resisted, arguing that the creation of a software workaround weakens the security of millions of iOS devices around the world and had implications on the public's right to privacy.Due to its high-profile nature, the case spilled over into the public arena, sparking a contentious debate over the proper balance between civil rights and national security. The stakes were high for both sides, as an FBI win would set valuable precedent in asserting AWA as an effective evidence gathering tool, while Apple would gain protections against the same if it won.In a last minute twist just one day prior to an initial evidentiary hearing, federal prosecutors called for a delay after being presented a potential workaround from an outside party. It appears the method is effective, rendering all prior arguments moot.With a working iOS exploit in the wild, focus is bound to shift toward Apple. The company's assertions, which rested on the premise of a nigh unhackable operating system, have been upended by today's development. Not only does Apple need to recover from the inevitable PR debacle, but it must also work to secure its devices against an attack method that could be aired in public as court evidence.The government has not yet determined whether or not it will furnish details of the vulnerability to Apple engineers, and it is not clear that the company is entitled to such information.Aside from its prepared statements, the DOJ made no substantial comments on the matter during a media conference call, saying that releasing details on the exploit would be premature. Apple did not comment on today's news.Apple has issued a brief statement, as reported by BuzzFeed's John Paczkowski:"From the beginning, we objected to the FBI's demand that Apple build a backdoor into the iPhone because we believed it was wrong and would set a dangerous precedent. As a result of the government's dismissal, neither of these occurred. This case should never have been brought.We will continue to help law enforcement with their investigations, as we have done all along, and we will continue to increase the security of our products as the threats and attacks on our data become more frequent and more sophisticated.Apple believes deeply that people in the States and around the world deserve data protection, security and privacy. Sacrificing one for the other only puts people and countries at greater risk.This case raised issues which deserve a national conversation about our civil liberties, and our collective security and privacy. Apple remains committed to participating in that discussion." ||||| FILE - This Feb. 17, 2016 file photos an iPhone is seen in Washington. The dispute over whether Apple must help the FBI hack into a terror suspect's iPhone is about to play out in a Southern California... (Associated Press) 
 
 LOS ANGELES (AP) — A much-anticipated court hearing on the federal government's effort to force Apple Inc. to unlock the iPhone used by one of the shooters in the San Bernardino terror attack was abruptly vacated Monday after the FBI revealed it may have a way to access data without the company's help. 
 
 Federal prosecutors made the surprising announcement on the eve of Tuesday's hearing in U.S. District Court in Riverside, California. In court papers they said the FBI has been researching methods to access the data on Syed Rizwan Farook's encrypted phone since obtaining it on Dec. 3, the day after the attack. 
 
 "An outside party" came forward over the weekend and showed the FBI a possible method, the government said in court papers requesting the hearing be postponed. Authorities need time to determine "whether it is a viable method that will not compromise data" on the phone. 
 
 If viable, "it should eliminate the need for the assistance from Apple," according to the filing. 
 
 The government did not identify the third party or explain what the proposed method entailed. 
 
 Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym granted that request and ordered the government to file a status report by April 5. Pym also stayed her Feb. 16 order compelling Apple to create software that would disable security features on the phone, including one that erases all information if a passcode is incorrectly entered more than 10 times. 
 
 In a conference call with reporters, Apple attorneys said it's premature to declare victory in the case because it's possible that authorities could come back in a few weeks and insist they still need the company's help. The attorneys spoke under an Apple policy that wouldn't allow them to be quoted by name. 
 
 The company hopes the government will tell Apple about whatever method it uses to access the phone's encrypted files. But the attorneys said it may be up to the FBI to decide whether to share the information. 
 
 The fact that a third party may have found a way into the phone without Apple's help appears to contradict every sworn affidavit and filing put that the Justice Department has put forward in the last month. The government has argued in each of its filings that Apple's help is necessary and that the company was the only entity that could provide investigators with what was needed. 
 
 FBI Director James Comey told the House Judiciary Committee in sworn testimony earlier this month that agency investigators had approached even the National Security Agency for help but did not have success. 
 
 Apple has previously said in court filings that the government did not exhaust all its options, and lawmakers have criticized the FBI for not doing more to try to crack the iPhone itself before seeking Apple's help. 
 
 "To me, it suggests that either the FBI doesn't understand the technology or they weren't giving us the whole truth when they said there is no other possible way" of examining the phone without Apple's help, said Alex Abdo, staff attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union. "Both of those are scary to me." 
 
 The ACLU has filed a court brief supporting Apple's position. 
 
 Robert Cattanach, a former U.S. Department of Justice attorney who handles cyber-security cases for the Dorsey & Whitney law firm, said the government would likely not have disclosed it had a lead on possibly unlocking the phone unless it was almost certain the method would work. That's because the disclosure weakens the government's case by introducing doubt that it could only access the phone with Apple's help, he said. 
 
 "They've created ambiguity in a place where they've previously said there is none," he said. 
 
 Prosecutors have argued that the phone used by Farook probably contains evidence of the Dec. 2 attack in which the county food inspector and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, slaughtered 14 at a holiday luncheon attended by many of his work colleagues. The two were killed in a police shootout hours later. 
 
 The FBI has said the couple was inspired by the Islamic State group. Investigators still are trying to piece together what happened and find out if there were collaborators. 
 
 The couple destroyed other phones they left behind, and the FBI has been unable to circumvent the passcode needed to unlock the iPhone, which is owned by San Bernardino County and was given to Farook for his job. 
 
 Apple has argued that the government was seeking "dangerous power" that exceeds the authority of the All Writs Act of 1789 it cited, and violates the company's constitutional rights, harms the Apple brand and threatens the trust of its customers to protect their privacy. The 18th-century law has been used on other cases to require third parties to help law enforcement in investigations. 
 
 It's not clear what method the government now wants to test. But even as the FBI has insisted that only Apple is able to provide the help it needs, some technical experts have argued there are other options. 
 
 The most viable method involves making a copy of the iPhone's flash memory drive, said Jonathan Zdziarski, a computer expert who specializes in iPhone forensics. That would allow investigators to make multiple tries at guessing the iPhone's passcode. A security feature in the phone is designed to automatically erase the data if someone makes 10 wrong guesses in a row. 
 
 But if that happens, Zdziarski said, investigators could theoretically restore the data from the backup copy they have created. 
 
 The data itself would remain encrypted until the phone is unlocked, but it would remain viable while investigators continued to guess the passcode, he added. 
 
 "It's a lot more involved than it sounds," Zdziarski cautioned, and no one has demonstrated that it would work in this case. 
 
 Some experts have also suggested that investigators could use lasers and acid to deconstruct the phone's memory chip, in order to physically examine the encrypted data and the encryption algorithm, in hopes of cracking the code. But hardware experts say that method has a high risk of destroying the memory during the process. 
 
 The notion of copying the flash memory was raised by U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa, a California Republican who previously ran a car alarm business, during a congressional hearing earlier this month, when Comey insisted that his bureau had explored all other possibilities. It has also been promoted by technical experts advising the ACLU. 
 
 ___ 
 
 Associated Press writers Eric Tucker and Tami Abdollah in Washington, D.C, and Sudhin Thanawala in San Francisco contributed to this report. ||||| James Martin/CNET 
 
 A security contractor to the US government may be able to unlock almost any Apple iPhone, Forbes reported Monday. 
 
 It's a potentially huge breakthrough for law enforcement, which has fought with Apple in the past about unlocking devices from suspected criminals. But it could also create a major privacy issue for Apple customers. 
 
 The security vendor, Israel-based Cellebrite, is used by several US law enforcement agencies, including the FBI and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, to unlock mobile devices, according to Forbes. The ability to crack into one of Apple's iOS devices is key for law enforcement officials, who often criticize the company and others for their iron-clad encryption. 
 
 The article cites unnamed sources who say Cellebrite has been telling customers that its engineers have the ability to skirt the security of Apple devices running iOS 11. That version of Apple's operating system, available on its latest iPhone X and iPhone 8 smartphones, was released in September and offers new features designed to make it harder for forensic experts to hack into iPhones. 
 
 Apple and Cellebrite declined CNET's request for comment. 
 
 Forbes notes that Cellebrite hasn't officially announced its new capabilities, but sales representatives have been advertising them to law enforcement officials and private forensic firms around the globe, according to its sources. Without offering specifics, the company states in its marketing material that it's capable of unlocking most iPhones and Android devices. 
 
 "Cellebrite Advanced Unlocking Services is the industry's only solution for overcoming many types of complex locks on market-leading devices," its marketing material states. While Cellebrite boasts its own capabilities, it's unclear what kind of information it's able to extract from the latest iOS devices, if any. 
 
 The news comes two years after Apple got into a legal tussle with the Department of Justice over breaking into the phone of one of two suspected terrorists in a mass shooting in San Bernardino, California. Apple refused to help in unlocking the device and was taken to court by the government. A federal judge in the case ordered Apple to help unlock the phone. But before Apple was forced to comply with a court order, the FBI announced it had successfully unlocked the device with the help of a third party. That third party is believed to have been Cellebrite. 
 
 The FBI spent $900,000 on that digital break-in. It was an expensive receipt for a search that discovered "nothing of real significance," according to CBS News. 
 
 While that legal battle between Apple and the FBI may have been cut short, it spurred further debate over privacy and security. Technology companies and digital-rights groups argue that strong encryption, which scrambles data so it can only be read by the right person, is needed to keep people safe and to protect privacy. Law enforcement argues it can't fight crimes unless it has access to information on mobile devices. 
 
 First published on Feb. 26 at 11:30 a.m. PT. 
 
 Update at 12:14 p.m. PT: Adds Cellebrite declining comment. 
 
 The Smartest Stuff: Innovators are thinking up new ways to make you, and the things around you, smarter. 
 
 Blockchain Decoded: CNET looks at the tech powering bitcoin -- and soon, too, a myriad of services that will change your life.
– The FBI said Monday it successfully used a mysterious technique without Apple Inc.'s help to hack into the iPhone used by a gunman in a mass shooting in California, effectively ending a pitched court battle between the Obama administration and one of the world's leading technology companies. The government asked a federal judge to vacate a disputed order forcing Apple to help the FBI break into the iPhone, saying it was no longer necessary. The court filing in US District Court for the Central District of California provided no details about how the FBI did it or who showed it how (some reports say the Israeli company Cellebrite hacked the iPhone, CNET reports, and this blog apparently shows how to do it). Apple did not immediately comment on the development. The surprise development also punctured the temporary perception that Apple's security might have been good enough to keep consumers' personal information safe even from the US government—with the tremendous resources it can expend when it wants to uncover something. The FBI used the technique to access data on an iPhone used by gunman Syed Farook, who died with his wife in a gun battle with police after they killed 14 people in San Bernardino, Calif., in December. "This shows that Apple was right all along that it was not necessary for the government to make it weaken its encryption to get what it needed pursuant to its warrant," a law professor tells Ars Technica. But Apple now has to handle "the inevitable PR debacle" and consider that the hacking method "could be aired in public as court evidence," says Apple Insider.