Granted, many people have strong opinions over whether Apple helps the FBI break into the iPhone of San Bernardino killer Syed Farook. It's not just about that single device, they say, but larger issues like privacy and security. It's about how best to balance protecting any one person's secrets and society as a whole.

Reyes' viewpoint, though, is shaped by one person he'll never get back: his boyfriend, Daniel Kaufman, one of 14 gunned down during a holiday luncheon at the southern California city's Inland Regional Center. He has been grieving ever since that December 2 terrorist attack, while authorities have been trying to figure out why Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik -- radical Islamists who supported ISIS -- did what they did.

Now, Reyes is trying to figure out why Apple would do what it did this week: oppose a federal judge's order to hack Farook's phone, a step CEO Tim Cook said would involve producing "something we consider too dangerous to create."

"It's infuriating to me, because I feel like all companies -- especially U.S. companies -- should do what they have to do to protect our country," said an "extremely pissed-off" Reyes, who is considering "getting rid of all [of his] Apple products" following Cook's announcement.

"Even if I wasn't involved in this, I would still want Apple to comply. That's what decent human beings should be doing."

Reyes isn't the only one for whom this debate strikes a personal chord.

JUST WATCHED Apple fights order to help unlock shooter's phone Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Apple fights order to help unlock shooter's phone 03:06

It matters, too, to Evan Greer. A transgender woman and activist since high school, she's seen "the deeply chilling effect of overly broad government surveillance," including some who shut themselves off and even suffer post-traumatic stress disorder. She views the FBI's request and judge's corresponding order as just one more example, saying it could end up making things far worse for everyone if whatever is created to hack Farook's phone ends up being used or copied to break into millions more mobile devices.

Greer said such sentiments drive her work as an advocate for protecting people's rights online , work she hopes will make the world better for her now 5-year-old son.

"What type of world is he going to grow up in?" she asked, applauding Apple for standing up against the government for "democracy and freedom of speech." "Will it be one in which he's constantly being monitored, ... where he feels that he has no privacy?"

"...I want him to have the ability to educate himself about [what's going on in the world] and to do something about it without feeling the government will be watching him."

Tracking killers' electronic trail a challenge

This debate wouldn't have happened if not for what unfolded more than two months ago on what should have been a festive occasion, a party for Farook's co-workers at the San Bernardino County Health Department.

Authorities arrived to the horrific sounds of "moans and wails," and the discovery that the killers had escaped. (They would be killed later that day in a rented SUV after a shootout with police.)

Photos: San Bernardino shooting Photos: San Bernardino shooting Police officers stand guard as they investigate a suspicious vehicle in Redlands, California, on Wednesday, December 2, after a mass shooting in nearby San Bernardino in which 14 people died and 21 were injured. The shooting took place at the Inland Regional Center, where employees with the county health department were attending a holiday event. The two shooters -- Syed Rizwan Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik -- were fatally shot in a gun battle with police hours after the initial incident. Farook worked for the county health department. Hide Caption 1 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting A police officer places a marker along East San Bernardino Avenue, near where the shootout occurred. Hide Caption 2 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting Law enforcement officers search a residential area for suspects who fled after the shooting. Hide Caption 3 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting Police search for the suspects in San Bernardino. Hide Caption 4 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting The residential area was not far from where the shooting occurred. Hide Caption 5 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting Law enforcement officers search a neighborhood in San Bernardino. Hide Caption 6 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting A police officer loads his weapon while pursuing suspects. Hide Caption 7 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting A SWAT team mobilizes during the search. Hide Caption 8 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting People pray on the San Bernardino Golf Course, across the street from where the shooting took place. Hide Caption 9 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting Heavily armed law enforcement officers swarmed the area where the shooting occurred. Hide Caption 10 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting People leave a community center after reuniting with friends and family in the aftermath of the shootings. Hide Caption 11 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting A woman is comforted near the scene of the shooting. Hide Caption 12 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting A police helicopter hovers around the Inland Regional Center. Hide Caption 13 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting Luis Gutierrez gets emotional as he talks about his wife who works in the facility and saw a gunman, according to Los Angeles Times photographer Marcus Yam. Hide Caption 14 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting Two women speak with a firefighter at a triage area near the scene. Hide Caption 15 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting Police stand guard outside of the emergency room at the Loma Linda University Medical Center, where some of the victims were being treated. Hide Caption 16 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting Police escort civilians away from the site of the shooting. Hide Caption 17 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting People walk away from the scene. It is unclear how many people were at the facility at the time of the shooting. Hide Caption 18 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting Police in SWAT gear secure the area. Hide Caption 19 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting Two women embrace at a community center where family members were gathering to pick up people from the scene. Hide Caption 20 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting People gather at the San Bernardino Golf Course. Hide Caption 21 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting People talk to police at the golf course. Hide Caption 22 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting A woman is wheeled away on a stretcher. Hide Caption 23 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting People are moved away from the area by bus. Hide Caption 24 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting Police and fire personnel are seen near the site of the shooting. Hide Caption 25 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting A crowd gathers behind the police line. Hide Caption 26 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting Ambulances pull out of a staging area near the Inland Regional Center. Hide Caption 27 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting A SWAT vehicle carries police officers. Hide Caption 28 of 29 Photos: San Bernardino shooting SWAT teams and a bomb squad were working to clear the buildings where the shootings took place. Hide Caption 29 of 29

Police hadn't had any involvement with Farook or Malik until then, though investigators quickly began digging into both. Tracking their electronic trail became a big part of the investigation, though the shooters didn't make it easy.

Malik advocated for jihad on social media , but she did it under a pseudonym and used strict privacy settings that did not allow people outside a small group of friends to see them, U.S. law enforcement officials said.

Who specifically did she and her husband talk to? Who helped them? Both shooters' phones could help provide answers to these and many other questions, which is why authorities sought Apple's help in accessing Farook's cell.

Apple CEO claims request creates 'backdoor'

Apple has helped the FBI in the past with requests to access information from phones. And before Tuesday's order, investigators had gotten permission to take data off Farook's phone.

The problem: Accessing Farook's data was much more difficult because the device had been locked with a user-generated numeric passcode.

Under Apple's operating systems, someone gets 10 tries to enter the right code to access a phone, the government explained in documents seeking the order. After 10 straight failures, Apple's auto-erase function kicks in, permanently wiping all information from the phone.

JUST WATCHED Apple: Break-in order a government 'overreach' Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Apple: Break-in order a government 'overreach' 03:25

That's why federal authorities have asked, in court, for Apple's help. And they continued these efforts Friday afternoon, filing a request in federal court in California's central district trying to compel Apple to comply with the judge's order.

The California-based tech giant claims that, to comply, it would have to create a new version of the iPhone operating system to circumvent key security features on Farook's phone.

"In the wrong hands, this software -- which does not exist today -- would have the potential to unlock any iPhone in someone's physical possession," Cook wrote in an open letter, which claimed the government overreached by asking for "a backdoor to the iPhone."

Passion on both sides of the debate

4/5 But that's wholly different than requiring companies to enable hacking of customer devices & data. Could be a troubling precedent — sundarpichai (@sundarpichai) February 17, 2016

The response was so resounding that Silicon Valley entrepreneur Alex Lindsay surmised, "Any communications/tech CEO that isn't standing with Apple against the FBI is basically admitting that they've already been compromised."

Any communications/tech CEO that isn't standing with Apple against the FBI is basically admitting that they've already been compromised. — alexlindsay (@alexlindsay) February 18, 2016

Others, though, have slammed Apple. Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump has been among the most vocal. Stuart Stevens, a political consultant who had been a top adviser to GOP candidate Mitt Romney's losing 2012 presidential bid, wondered on Twitter how a company that "put cameras & recording devices in every one's pocket" could suddenly be a champion for privacy.

"Apple has no problem trying to gather every bit of our personal data for marketing," Stevens tweeted, "but [feels] obligated to protect privacy of dead mass murderers?"

Apple has no problem trying to gather every bit of our personal data for marketing but obligated to protect privacy of dead mass murderers? — stuart stevens (@stuartpstevens) February 18, 2016

Government officials, meanwhile, rallied around the FBI and U.S. Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym. New York Police Commissioner William Bratton opined that "no device, no car and no apartment should be beyond the reach of a court-ordered search warrant.

The U.S. Justice Department has insisted the order is "narrowly tailored to this particular phone" and would "not require Apple to redesign its products, to disable encryption or to open content on the phone."

Eileen Decker, a U.S. attorney whose central California district includes San Bernardino, framed the debate as a matter of fairness to people like Reyes who are mourning those killed.

"We have made a solemn commitment to the victims and their families that we will leave no stone unturned as we gather as much information and evidence as possible," Decker said. "These victims and families deserve nothing less."

Victim's husband: 'The mystery needs to be resolved'

Mandy Pifer's boyfriend, Shannon Johnson, was there that day at the Inland Regional Center. He sacrificed his own body to shield his co-worker Denise Peraza as the gunshots rang out, saving her life while giving his own.

Pifer initially sided with the government in its quest to access the contents of Farook's phone and had criticized Apple.

But after researching the issue, Pifer became undecided on the matter, she told CNN on Thursday.

"I've done some more reading. I understand more the Apple side of it," Pifer said. "I think it says a lot about America that this security only took place because nude photos of celebrities were hacked. So now you can't hack into a terrorist's phone."

At the same time, Farook's phone may hold answers on whether the terrorist called any conspirators, and that information could help grieving families and loved ones. "For those people, the more answers they get, the more peace it brings," she said.

But, overall, she added, "I'm torn. I'm just torn."

"I want justice for all. I have both feet on both sides. I guess I'm just prepared for this to be in the news for a long time and for it to go to the Supreme Court," she said.

Salihin Kondoker, whose wife, Anies Kondoker, was shot and survived, said, "Apple needs to help."

"There is so much mystery with this case," he said. "The mystery needs to be resolved."

Asked what she'd tell those like Kondoker, Greer said she understands their desire to prevent others from enduring the pain they've experienced. But she says having Apple find a workaround to its security features defeats this purpose if it paves the way for other people, governments -- even terrorist groups -- to access people's private information.

"What the government is trying to do here is not going to make us safer," Greer said. "It's going to make us more at risk for these type of attacks and, in fact, more at risk for all types of violent crime."

"... People have a relationship with their phones. And I think that's what's galvanizing people."