The CIA can turn your TV into a listening device, bypass popular encryption apps, and possibly control your car, according to a trove of alleged documents from the US spy agency released on March 7, 2017 by WikiLeaks. Picture: Saul loeb

As the investigation ensued, a bitter and highly publicised row erupted. It pitted the US government and its intelligence agencies against Apple, and by implication the tech industry as a whole.

The FBI wanted Apple to provide information to allow it to hack into the iPhone that belonged to one of the shooters. Apple refused to hand over the key to allow the government to bypass its encryption, even declining to comply with a judge’s order.

Then all of a sudden, the FBI changed its tune and withdrew its case in the US Federal Court in rather mysterious circumstances saying a third party had found a way to hack into the phone.

Was the CIA that third party?

That is the question that has been circulating online after it was revealed early yesterday that the CIA had a trove of techniques and specially developed malware to allow it to hack into various consumer devices including smartphones and smart TVs.

For some, it’s proof the US government was playing silly buggers when it forced the public showdown with Apple.

At the time, there was a popular theory that the FBI was using the high profile case in an effort to set a legal precedent it could use to force tech companies to comply with future investigations.

Former analyst and NSA leaker Edward Snowden believed such a thing could be true and called the FBI’s claim that it couldn’t crack the iPhone “bullsh*t” to a room full of people at a conference in Washington.

However it might be a bit of a stretch to claim that FBI director James Comey got a tap on the shoulder from the CIA who were all of a sudden willing to help. Particularly given that it’s well documented that the two agencies don’t often share much information, and are particularly stingy when it comes to their inner most secrets.

It’s certainly not the only conspiracy theory to gain fresh life from the release of the Vault 7 documents as the confirmation that the CIA was working on hacking connected vehicles reignited theories the US government had been involved in the death of investigative journalist Michael Hastings.

Hastings was a vocal critic of government mass surveillance and died in June 2013 when his Mercedes apparently lost control and burst into flames before slamming into a tree.

FBI director James Comey testifies before the House Judiciary Committee on the encryption of the iPhone belonging to one of the San Bernardino attackers. Picture: Nicholas KammSource:AFP

For its part, Apple said many of the software vulnerabilities exposed by the leaks which the CIA allegedly used to hack into people’s iPhones have now been fixed.

The tech giant issued a statement Wednesday saying that it had already addressed many issues described in the documents released by WikiLeaks.

“While our initial analysis indicates that many of the issues leaked today were already patched in the latest iOS, we will continue work to rapidly address any identified vulnerabilities,” the company said.

“We always urge customers to download the latest iOS to make sure they have the most recent security updates.

“Our products and software are designed to quickly get security updates into the hands of our customers, with nearly 80 per cent of users running the latest version of our operating system.”

Apple says customers needn’t worry about the vulnerabilities exposed by the WikiLeaks dump. Picture: Josh EdelsonSource:AFP