"No court has ever authorised what the government now seeks, no law supports such unlimited and sweeping use of the judicial process, and the Constitution forbids it," Apple said.
Apple Inc has asked a federal magistrate to reverse its order that the company helped the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) hack into a locked iPhone, accusing the federal government of seeking "dangerous power" through the courts and of promoting a "boundless" interpretation of the law.
The filing represents Apple's first official response since the judge's order last week and builds upon arguments voiced by the company's chief executive and supporters.
The Justice Department is proposing a "boundless interpretation" of the law that, if left unchecked, could bring disastrous repercussions for digital privacy, the company warned in a memo submitted to Magistrate Sheri Pym.
"The government says, " 'Just this once' and 'Just this phone.' But the government knows those statements are not true," lawyers for Apple wrote on Thursday.
The dispute broke into public view last Tuesday when Pym directed Apple to help the FBI gain access to a phone used by one of the assailants in the San Bernardino, California, attacks.
The filing was made the same day that FBI Director James Comey defended the government's approach during separate appearances on Capitol Hill, where he stressed that the agency was seeking specialised software for only one phone as part of an ongoing terrorism investigation. The Justice Department wants to bypass some security features on the iPhone so that it can try as many passcodes as possible without the data being erased.
But Apple said the specialised software the government wants it to build does not currently exist and "would require significant resources and effort to develop," including the work of six to 10 engineers working two to four weeks. The magistrate judge suggested in her ruling that the government would be required to pay Apple's costs.
"No court has ever authorised what the government now seeks, no law supports such unlimited and sweeping use of the judicial process, and the Constitution forbids it," Apple said.
It accused the government of working with a closed courtroom process under the auspices of a terrorism investigation of trying "to cut off debate and circumvent thoughtful analysis."
"The government wants to compel Apple to create a crippled and insecure product," the company said. "Once the process is created, it provides an avenue for criminals and foreign agents to access millions of iPhones."
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