this post was submitted on 04 Feb 2026
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FBI Couldn’t Get into WaPo Reporter’s iPhone Because It Had Lockdown Mode Enabled (www.404media.co)
submitted 1 day ago by tonytins@pawb.social to c/technology@lemmy.world
162 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

The FBI has been unable to access a Washington Post reporter’s seized iPhone because it was in Lockdown Mode, a sometimes overlooked feature that makes iPhones broadly more secure, according to recently filed court records.

The court record shows what devices and data the FBI was able to ultimately access, and which devices it could not, after raiding the home of the reporter, Hannah Natanson, in January as part of an investigation into leaks of classified information. It also provides rare insight into the apparent effectiveness of Lockdown Mode, or at least how effective it might be before the FBI may try other techniques to access the device.

“Because the iPhone was in Lockdown mode, CART could not extract that device,” the court record reads, referring to the FBI’s Computer Analysis Response Team, a unit focused on performing forensic analyses of seized devices. The document is written by the government, and is opposing the return of Natanson’s devices.

Archive: http://archive.today/gfTg9

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[–] NOT_RICK@lemmy.world 227 points 1 day ago (18 children)

This news sparks joy. It’s a shame the FBI is wasting their time on petty political bullshit like this instead of going after real crime. What a shameful chapter for the FBI, and that’s really saying something given their illustrious history.

[–] partofthevoice@lemmy.zip 9 points 1 day ago (4 children)

It’s really great, isn’t it? But I’d leave you with one theoretical angle to consider…

What if the FBI actually did get into the phone? If so, then why would this information have been made public?

The only reason why, that I can think of right now, is that the FBI wants more people using Lockout. If so, the only reason I can possibly image for that is—there are actually some good commonly available techniques to keep them out of your devices, of which Lockout is insufficient. They’d want more people assuming that it is sufficient, and this news could accomplish that.

Purely theoretical… but the bigger point here, whether that framing is strategically true or miraculously over-thinking things, is that something does work. No matter what, you know something works.

[–] AA5B@lemmy.world 7 points 1 day ago (1 children)

You create a great story but violates K.i.S.S.

  • not saying they got in means they can’t use it as evidence. Sometimes there’s still due process
  • even if they can get into lockdown mode, it’s clearly harder than not lockdown. Why conspire to make it harder?
[–] partofthevoice@lemmy.zip 2 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Yes, probably so. I haven’t seen the designs of lockdown mode, but I get the case for my hypothesis being far fetched. Wasn’t trying to start any conspiracies. Please, ignore my shenanigans.

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