Law enforcement agency, FBI has reportedly paid over $1 million for acquiring a software which allowed them to unlock the iPhone 5c of the San Bernardino shooter. This hacking deal came to light after the FBI director James Comey made remarks at the discussion in London.
FBI Paid Hackers More Than $1 Million To Hack The iPhone of The San Bernardino Shooter
Comey was asked that how much the FBI paid for acquiring the hacking software, he said ” a lot”. He further hinted that “more than I will make in the remainder of this job – which is seven years and four months – for sure.”
Also Read: FBI’s Trick of Hacking iPhone May Leak Soon
Comey earned $183,000 last year, as per public records, the remarks from Comey show that the government agency has paid more than $1.2 million for a software to unlock the iPhone 5c of the San Bernardino shooter.
However, despite spending hefty amount, FBI reportedly didn’t collected any vital data from the shooters iPhone after successfully unlocking it. Moreover, the software acquired by FBI works only with Apple iPhone 5c, it doesn’t work with the later iPhones like 6/6s.
Also Read: Apple is Working on iPhones That Could be Difficult to Hack
“I’m hoping that we can somehow get to a place where we have a sensible solution, or set of solutions, that doesn’t involve hacking and doesn’t involve spending tons of money in a way that’s unscalable,” Comey said.
“We paid a lot’’ for the hacking tool, Mr. Comey said. “But it was worth it.’’
Earlier FBI Director, James Comey said that the agency had purchased tool from a third party to unlock the iPhone, however he didn’t explained it further. Earlier report stated that FBI had not used the services of Israeli Mobile Forensics firm Cellebrite to break into the iPhone.
