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WEATHER ALERT

SYED RIZWAN FAROOK

Ceremony marks anniversary of fatal California terror attack

(County of San Bernardino via AP)SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. – Survivors of a terrorist attack that killed 14 people at a holiday party east of Los Angeles observed the fifth anniversary of the assault on Wednesday, and officials unveiled plans for a memorial to honor the dead. A private memorial ceremony that also included families of the slain was held outside the San Bernardino County Government Center, where the memorial will be built, a county statement said. Family members laid white roses at the site, the San Bernardino Sun reported. One survivor, Kevin Ortiz, joined other people in laying flowers at the shooting scene, the Inland Regional Center, not far away from the Government Center. Minutes later, a post on a Facebook page associated with Malik pledged allegiance to the leader of the Islamic State terror group.

Riverside, California Man Who Admitted Planning Mass Casualty Attacks and Purchasing Firearms Later Used in 2015 Terrorist Attack in San Bernardino Ordered to Serve 20-Year Federal Prison Sentence

A Riverside man was sentenced today to 20 years in federal prison for conspiring to commit terrorist attacks in the Inland Empire and for providing assault rifles later used in the 2015 San Bernardino terrorist attack that killed 14 people. In the plea agreement and in open court, Marquez admitted that he conspired with Syed Rizwan Farook in 2011 and 2012 to attack Riverside City College (RCC) and commuter traffic on the 91 Freeway. Marquez also pleaded guilty to making false statements in connection with the acquisition of firearms, in violation of 18 U.S.C. More than three years later, Farook and his wife used those rifles in the shooting rampage at the San Bernardino Inland Regional Center (IRC) on Dec. 2, 2015. The investigation into the deadly shooting at the IRC quickly uncovered evidence that, in 2011 and 2012, Marquez purchased two rifles that Farook and his wife used in the IRC attack.

justice.gov

Man gets 20 years for buying guns used in 2015 terror attack

(Bill Robles via AP, File)RIVERSIDE, Calif. – The man who bought two rifles that husband-and-wife assailants used to kill 14 people in a Southern California terror attack nearly five years ago was sentenced Friday to 20 years in prison. Minutes later, a post on a Facebook page associated with Malik pledged allegiance to the leader of the Islamic State terror group. He had stopped speaking to Farook years before the attack and didn’t know it was going to happen, Aquilina said. Soon after they were killed, Marquez called 911 to say the shooter was his neighbor and had used his gun. He later tried to withdraw his plea to one of the counts, but the request was denied by the court.

Why the US government is questioning WhatsApp's encryption

During the investigation the FBI obtained Farook's iPhone, but could not access it through the passcode. The iPhone's encryption methods were so secure, according to Apple, that Apple itself couldn't access the data on the phone. As a result, the U.S. government wanted Apple to purposefully weaken the encryption of its iPhones, putting a "backdoor" in the iOS framework that would allow the FBI to access the contents of iPhones everywhere. These discussions with Apple in particular have brought privacy activists and law enforcement head to head, fighting over who can utilize the privacy provided by encryption and what they can use that encryption for. And while these platforms are far from perfect Jeff Bezos' phone was recently accessed through a malicious video message via WhatsApp many people rely on the privacy encryption provides daily.

cnbc.com