The ongoing battle between Apple and the FBI regarding the ability to hack into iPhones, specifically the one belonging to one of the San Bernardino shooters is still ongoing, though Apple appears to have scored a victory in a separate case.

According to Forbes, Apple scored a victory in New York when a federal judge denied a motion by the government that attempted to force the company to extract information from a locked phone as part of a drug investigation--something that could come into play when the case in California is heard. That case takes things one step further because the FBI wants the company to write software which will disable the security features on the iPhone 5C that was used by Syed Farook, one of the shooters from the San Bernardino incident.

In his ruling, U.S. Magistrate Judge James Orenstein ruled that he didn't believe that the All Writs Act--the one the government is trying to invoke to force Apple's hand--could necessarily resolve the issue at hand.

"...Ultimately, the question to be answered in this matter, and in others like it across the country, is not whether the government should be able to force Apple to help it unlock a specific device; it is instead whether the All Writs Act resolves that issue and many others like it yet to come," he wrote in his judgment.

The ruling also comes as questions have been raised concerning the need for this being brought into the courts, with Libertarian candidate for President John McAfee recently appearing on RT News to reveal just how simple it would be for the FBI to actually hack into Farook's phone without having to try and force Apple to do something they don't want to do, or take the issue to court.

Watch that interview below.

Tags: apple