[panax]

If Apple had designed the iPhone to require user authentication before updating the software/firmware then they wouldn't be in this mess and they would not be able to comply with the court order short of hacking/jailbreaking the phone. If the pin was required to be entered before installing new software on the phone then the FBI would first need to know the pin to load GovOS on the phone so they would not be able to crack the pin using this method. And once Apple patches their software to require user authentication before installing updates they will no longer be able to comply with any similar type of request.