Bill Gates Sides Against Apple in FBI iPhone-Unlocking Case

Bill Gates is siding against (NASDAQ:APPL) Apple — and many other technology companies — in saying the firm should help the U.S. government to hack into a locked iPhone as part of an investigation into the San Bernardino shooting.

Apple has resisted providing a piece of programming that would help the FBI access the phone. Apple argues that governments, both in the U.S. and overseas, are likely to use the program in other cases, undermining data privacy.

In an interview Tuesday with the Financial Times, Microsoft founder Gates says "this is a specific case where the government is asking for access to information." He likened it to the police getting records from a phone company.

The heads of many tech companies like Facebook (NASDAQ:FB), Twitter (NYSE:TWTR) and Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL) have sided with Apple.