Google to support Apple in court against FBI

 Google will back Apple in its court battle with the FBI over the security of its iPhone. Last week, a court ordered Apple to help the FBI hack into a locked iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino killers in December’s shooting spree.
Apple opposes the order. Google now plans to file a “friend of the court” brief on Apple’s behalf within the next week, a person familiar with the situation said. The person asked not to be identified because Google is still drafting the document.
Google makes the Android software that powers most smartphones in the world. Like Apple, it fears creating a precedent that authorities could use to read messages, photos and other sensitive information stored on phones.
Recently, Facebook’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg also supported Apple’s chief executive Tim Cook in his stand-off with the US government over breaking into the iPhone of a mass shooter.
The controversy started earlier this month when Apple refused to help the FBI break into an iPhone belonging to the late Syed Farook, who along with his wife went on a deadly shooting rampage in San Bernardino in December.
Bill Gates: Apple should give San Bernadino iPhone data to FBI
Apple claims that cooperating with the probe would undermine privacy and security for its devices, while the US government counters it is a one-time request that will aid an important investigation.