According to three different law enforcement agencies in the United States, criminals are switching over to the iPhone as their “device of choice” due to the strong security measures built into the phone. These criminals previously used ‘burner’ phones, but with iPhones being heavily locked down and being almost impossible to break into, they are now switching over to it.

The law enforcement agencies revealed this in a court filing and said that they were aware of “numerous instances” in which criminals have now switched over to an iPhone, though they did not mention any particular incident.

They also said that during a jailhouse call intercepted by New York authorities, an inmate said that the security and encryption policies implemented by Apple in their mobile operating system was a “gift from God.” The law enforcement agencies also said in their court filing that Apple’s stance on this matter posed a great threat to all their investigations.

Apple has been receiving a lot of heat from various government agencies because of its decision to oppose the government order and in creating a backdoor in iOS that would allow the FBI to access the locked iPhone 5c of one of the San Bernardino shooters. Apple has already provided the FBI with all the data it had about the phone, but has refused to create a backdoor in its operating system for their benefit.

Ironically, law enforcement agencies had previously praised Apple for its security measures on the iPhone, which led to a reduction in iPhone theft rates.

It was only earlier today that Apple’s vice president of software engineer, Craig Federighi posted an op-ed on Apple’s fight against the FBI.

I am not denying the fact that the super strong security measures on the iPhone makes it an obvious choice for criminals, but that does not mean Apple should have to lower its security standards. If anything, the FBI and other government agencies should step up their game.