BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — From contact information, text messages to bank statements, our smartphones store countless pieces of personal information.

“Apple, and this applies to Google and Androids, have been selling these phones with the feature that they’d be encrypted,” said Steven MacMartin, who is the director for Medaille’s Homeland Security degree program. “No one would be able to gain access.”

That’s for personal privacy. Now, the issue is becoming muddled.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation recovered several cell phones, including an iPhone, when searching the San Bernardino shooters home. The government wants the information in the iPhone but the encryption is keeping them out. All smartphones limit the number of attempts to unlock phones with pass codes; once it’s exceeded, all the information on the phone is deleted. That’s what happened when the FBI tried hacking the shooter’s phone.

Now, they’re ordering Apple to create new, unique software which would recover this encrypted information.

“We need to write some sort of legislation to allow the gov access to these phone,” said MacMartin.

After 31 years in law enforcement and seeing that angle, he is taking that stance on the FBI vs. Apple suit. He believes the shooter’s phone holds important information which could be imperative to national security.

“If there is information on that phone that is related to a terror attack that occurs in the future, this is on Apple,” said MacMartin.

Apple is standing firm on their stance. CEO Tim Cook released a letter to customers, saying in it “Opposing this order is not something we take lightly. We feel we must speak up in the face of what we see as an overreach by the U.S. government.”

“Apple is saying if this got into the wrong hands, potentially more damage could be done; more than finding out more info than the FBI is trying to find out,” said Paul Cambria, a Buffalo defense attorney who is standing with Apple in their decision to not create the software.

He agrees, saying he feel the government is overreaching; saying it comes close to crossing the 4th amendment rights – search and seizure – citizens have under the U.S. Constitution.

“To have the federal government say [to Apple] ‘create what would be a disastrous, dangerous software’, clearly that wouldn’t be something I would be in favor of,” said Cambria via a phone interview with WIVB.  “It would be against everything we stand for — protecting people’s right of privacy of individuals.”

iPhone users are just as split on the topic as well.

“Safety is more of a concern over security,” said Alissa Barrett, an iPhone user, siding with the FBI.  “If there were any problem, I would be more than willing to have Apple disclose my information to the FBI.”

“It’s a hard situation between national security and personal right,” said Rafael Mercado, an iPhone user who torn on the subject. “Somehow we’re going to have to come together about where well lie on that one.”

That’s something Cambria and MacMartin agree on – saying a compromise will have to be reached if the government wants the information on that cell phone.

This issue is currently in the magistrate court level – as Apple continues to oppose it, which they don’t appear to be wavering on their stance, it could progress through the court levels.