Older versions of Google's Android and Apple's iOS smartphones and tablet computers are reportedly unlocked by the companies when a court orders them to do so. This action is taken for law enforcement functions without the owner's permission and involves the resetting of passcodes on unencrypted gadgets. Apple is able to unlock mobile devices with physical access to smart phones or portable computers, while Google can remotely bypass the passwords of nearly three-quarters of all Android devices.
The official document from the Manhattan, New York City district attorney's office was first spotted by The Next Web. Its report noted that the companies can only unlock devices without the owner's green light when they are not encrypted.
Apple made encryption a default setting last year when it launched iOS 8. After an iPhone or iPad user sets a passcode, the company cannot unlock a device and access data without the device's passcode.
Based on the Steve Jobs co-founded company, 9 percent of Apple device owners are using iOS 7 or older versions. About two-thirds are running the newest iOS 9.
However, Android smartphones are more vulnerable to unlock. Encryption is only available on the latest Android 6.0 Marshmallow OS.
In fact, Android 4.4 KitKat is used by the biggest percentage of Google devices, at 37.8 percent. Google can remotely reset passcodes on a total 74 percent of all Android phones, according to BGR.
The search giant reported that just 0.3 percent of Google's global Android devices use Marshmallow.
Google added full-disk encryption to Android 5.0 Lollipop. However it was not turned on by default.
Apple and Google also require the user's password in order to access encrypted data from cloud backup services.
The NYC district attorney's office reported that law enforcement officials cannot access criminal evidence on smartphones even after obtaining a search warrant. That is due to Google and Apple making full-disk encryption a default setting.
However, Google questioned the district attorney's report. Its security chief Adrian Ludwig claimed that the company cannot unlock any encrypted or unencrypted device running any version of Android, which has been protected with a password, pin, or fingerprint, according to The Guardian.