World

FBI blasts Apple over encryption while revealing al-Qaeda link to deadly naval base shooting

The gunman in a deadly attack at a military base in Pensacola, Fla., last December was meticulous in his planning and had been radicalized overseas for at least five years, U.S. officials said Monday, sparing no criticism for Apple on the issue of accessing the shooter's phone.

FBI learned of contact between gunman and extremists by breaking iPhone encryption

Attorney General William Barr, right, and FBI Director Christopher Wray, seen in May 2019, announced new details into the December shooting of naval officers in Florida, while accusing Apple of a months-long delay in getting information from the shooter's phone. (Jose Luis Magana/The Associated Press)

The gunman in a deadly attack at a military base in Pensacola, Fla., last December was meticulous in his planning and had been radicalized overseas for at least five years, U.S. officials said Monday.

The FBI learned of the contacts between the gunman, Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani, and an al-Qaeda operative after breaking the encryption on cellphones that had previously been locked.

Attorney General William Barr and FBI Director Chris Wray held a news conference to announce the developments in the probe into the shooting late last year at the Pensacola Naval Air Station, in which a Saudi Air Force officer killed three U.S. sailors and injured eight other people.

Alshamrani, who was killed by a sheriff's deputy during the rampage at a classroom building, was undergoing flight training at Pensacola, where members of foreign militaries routinely receive instruction.

The Justice Department had previously asked Apple to help extract data from two iPhones that belonged to the gunman, including one that authorities say Alshamrani damaged with a bullet after being confronted by law enforcement. Wray said FBI agents were able to break the encryption without the help of Apple.

"We received effectively no help from Apple," said Wray.

Both Wray and Barr said that the solution that was engineered for this specific investigation was not a broad application that would necessarily help in future cases.

Sailors carry the casket of Cameron Walters at Oak Hill Cemetery in Richmond Hill, Ga., on Dec. 16, 2019. Walters was one of the three Navy sailors killed in a Saudi gunman's attack at Pensacola Naval Air Station in Florida two weeks earlier. The FBI said Monday there was more evidence, including through the shooter's phone, establishing links with al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. (Steve Bisson/Savannah Morning News/The Associated Press)

Barr said the workaround required "large sums of taxpayer dollars" and that the ongoing issue around encryption of iPhones needs to be addressed.

"The developments in this case demonstrate a need for some legislative solution," he said.

Apple has previously said encryption protects the privacy and security of its law-abiding customers, while the American Civil Liberties Union has warned of tech companies being used by administrations and law enforcement for government surveillance.

Not clear if attack was directed from overseas

Law enforcement officials left no doubt that Alshamrani was motivated by jihadist ideology, saying he visited a New York City memorial to the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend and posted anti-American and anti-Israeli messages on social media just two hours before the shooting.

Separately, al-Qaeda's branch in Yemen released a video claiming the attack. The branch, al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, or AQAP, has long been considered the global network's most dangerous branch and has attempted to carry out attacks on the U.S. mainland.

Wray stopped short of saying it was directed by AQAP while responding to a question, but said it was "certainly more than inspired."

In January, U.S. officials announced that they were sending home 21 Saudi military students after an investigation revealed that they had had jihadist or anti-American sentiments on social media pages, or had "contact with child pornography."

Barr said at the time that Saudi Arabia had agreed to review the conduct of all 21 to see if they should face military discipline and to send back anyone the U.S. later determines should face charges.

With files from CBC News