Get All Access for $5/mo

Attorney General on Apple: We're Asking Them to Do What Their Customer Wants Loretta Lynch speaks on the San Bernardino case during a visit to the Late Show With Stephen Colbert.

By Nina Zipkin

U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch said that Apple won't comply with its customer's needs by refusing to unlock the phone of a deceased terrorist.

"What we're asking them to do is to do what their customer wants. The real owner of the phone is the county -- the employer of one of the terrorists who is now dead," she told Stephen Colbert on The Late Show last night. "And what we're asking them to do is to help us disable the password erase function that basically wipes the phone if you guess the password wrong after 10 times. We will try and get into the phone. We will extract the evidence under the court order that we have gotten that's very narrow and very focused."

The case between the Justice Department and Apple involves potential information held on the iPhone belonging to one of the San Bernardino shooters, who killed 14 people and injured 22 in an attack in December.

Related: FBI Director Says Apple Case May Set a Precedent for Other Devices

In an open letter to customers last month, Tim Cook said that while the company had complied with the FBI's investigation to that point, they had reached an impasse because the company had been asked to build a backdoor to the security system of the iPhone.

"In the wrong hands, this software -- which does not exist today -- would have the potential to unlock any iPhone in someone's physical possession. … And while the government may argue that its use would be limited to this case, there is no way to guarantee such control," the CEO wrote.

Related: Justice Department Calls Apple's Rhetoric 'Corrosive' in iPhone Case

When Colbert asked her about the case, saying that he assumed she disagreed with Cook's stance on the issue, Lynch said that the Justice Department is not asking for a backdoor or to turn any device on to spy on anyone. She added that while she and the Apple CEO have disagreed publicly in court, "I've had a number of great conversations with Tim Cook on issues of privacy," and as both the attorney general and a private citizen, she said she understood why privacy is so important.

Pushing back a bit, Colbert said that Cook has characterized this request as a slippery slope -- that if the function did exist, it could be used turn on someone's phone to surveil them without their knowledge.

Moving away from Apple at the end of the interview, Colbert asked for the Attorney General's take on Hillary Clinton's State Department emails. Unsurprisingly, Lynch couldn't say too much about any Justice Department activity involving Clinton. For more, check out the video above.

Nina Zipkin

Entrepreneur Staff

Staff Writer. Covers leadership, media, technology and culture.

Nina Zipkin is a staff writer at Entrepreneur.com. She frequently covers leadership, media, tech, startups, culture and workplace trends.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Side Hustle

The Side Hustle He Started in His College Apartment Turned Into a $70,000-a-Month Income Stream — Then Earned Nearly $2 Million Last Year

Kyle Morrand and his college roommates loved playing retro video games — and the pastime would help launch his career.

Business Ideas

63 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2024

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2024.

Science & Technology

Why We Shouldn't Fear AI in Education (and How to Use It Effectively)

Facing resistance to new technologies in the educational process is nothing new, and AI is no exception. Yet, this powerful tool is set to overcome these challenges and revolutionize education, preparing students and professionals for a future of unparalleled efficiency and personalized learning.

Growing a Business

How to Determine The Ideal Length of Your Marketing Emails Your Customers Will Actually Read

Wondering how long your marketing emails should be? Here's what consumers say — so you can send them exactly what they like.

Business News

A Former Corporate Lawyer Now Makes Six Figures on YouTube — Here's How She Does It

Here are the secrets to starting and growing a successful YouTube channel, according to a YouTuber with millions of subscribers.

Business News

Y Combinator Helped Launch Reddit, Airbnb and Dropbox. Here's What I Learned From Its Free Startup School.

The famed startup accelerator offers a free course on building a business — and answers five pressing questions for founders.