Following the December 2015 terrorist attack in San Bernardino , California , in which 14 people were killed by Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik , the Federal Bureau of Investigation solicited Apple to assist in " unlock ing " an iPhone 5C used by Farook . On February 16 , 2016 , in response to a request by the Department of Justice , a federal magistrate judge ordered Apple to create a custom iOS firmware version that would allow investigators to circumvent the phone 's security features . Cook responded in an open letter , wherein he denounced the government 's demands as constituting a " breach of privacy " with " chilling " consequences
December 2015 terrorist attack in San Bernardino
2015 San Bernardino attack
Tim Cook