Apple Inc. and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are headed into a very important legal battle regarding the iPhone used by Syed Rizwan Farook. He is the main suspect in the mass shooting in San Bernardino, California that killed 14 people last Dec. 2, 2015. U.S. Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym has ordered Apple to help the FBI in hacking Farook's phone to find out information that may help the investigation.

Apple's Opposition

Apple CEO Tim Cook has issued a statement, saying that Apple is opposing the order because creating a backdoor is a serious threat to data security. Apple is insisting that once the backdoor is created, it can be used many more times on any device in the world. However, the U.S. government remains adamant that it will only be used once.

"While we believe the FBI's intentions are good, it would be wrong for the government to force us to build a backdoor into our products. And ultimately, we fear that this demand would undermine the very freedoms and liberty our government is meant to protect," Cook said.

Cook insists that an encryption is important as it secures its users' personal information, but creating a backdoor will put its users at risk. Apple has received the support of the Information Technology Industry Council that represents technology companies like Blackberry, Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Samsung.

All Writs Act of 1789

The U.S. government is planning to use the All Writs Act of 1789 to validate their motive in forcing Apple to create a backdoor. The 227-year-old law gives courts the authority to issue formal orders to people to do things based on legal and obligatory reasons.

"They are not asking Apple to redesign its product or to create a new backdoor to one of their products. They're simply asking for something that would have an impact on this one device," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.

Judge Pym is ordering Apple to create a software that will try thousands of combinations to unlock Farook's iPhone without triggering the self-destruct feature. Federal agents need the information in Farook's phone to fill an 18-minute timeline gap in the San Bernardino investigations.

The bureau is backed up by GOP presidential candidates Donald Trump and Marco Rubio. Both want Apple to just fulfill what the court ordered and help prevent a possible future attack. Trump called the situation "ridiculous" while Rubio thinks it's a very "tough issue."