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"We
have a tool that works on a narrow slice of phones," Comey said
at a conference on encryption and surveillance at Kenyon College
in Ohio late on Wednesday.
Apple's shares were down 1.3 percent at midday.
Comey added that the technique would not work on the iPhone 5s
and the later models iPhone 6 and 6s. The iPhone 5c model was
introduced in 2013 and has since been discontinued by Apple as
newer models have become available.
The Justice Department said in March it had unlocked the San
Bernardino shooter's iPhone with the help of an unidentified
third party and dropped its case against Apple Inc <AAPL.O>,
ending a high-stakes legal clash but leaving the broader fight
over encryption unresolved.
As the technique cannot be used to break into newer models, law
enforcement authorities will likely have to lean on Apple to
help them access the devices involved in other cases.
The Justice Department has asked a New York court to force Apple
to unlock an iPhone 5s related to a drug investigation.
Prosecutors in that case said they would update the court by
April 11 on whether it would "modify" its request for Apple's
assistance.
If the government continues to pursue that case, the technology
company could potentially use legal discovery to force the FBI
to reveal what technique it used, a source familiar with the
situation told Reuters.
Apple and the FBI were not immediately available for comment.
The FBI began briefing select U.S. senators this week about the
method used to unlock the San Bernardino iPhone.
Up to Wednesday's close of $110.96, Apple's shares had risen
more than 5 percent this year.
(Reporting by Narottam Medhora in Bengaluru and Dustin Volz in
Washington; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)
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