High officials of the United Kingdom have gathered privately with their American counterparts to clarify that their request for access to encrypted data in ICLOUD of Apple is not a general demand; Instead, they are looking for access only to data linked to people who are already involved in crimes such as terrorism, according to Bloomberg.
The people familiar with the matter told the publication that the British officials emphasized the separate orders that would be required for each access request, ensuring that they are strictly linked to investigations in serious crimes within the United Kingdom, they denied looking for broad powers to access the data of any person for any reason, particularly that of US residents, a statement that has been promoted Controversy
Apple fights, restricts encryption for UK users
In February, it was reported that the United Kingdom had asked Apple for a way of accessing the user information that was covered by advanced data protection, an optional security layer presented in 2022. The Office of the Secretary of the Interior invoked the 2016 investigation powers law, which gives authority to authority to force companies to provide access to data as part of criminal investigations. The law also prevents Apple from publicly revealing the application, issued as a notice of technical capacity or expressing its concerns to the public, effectively imposing a GAG order to the company.
In response, Apple took action weeks later, eliminating access to ADP encryption function for devices controlled by the United Kingdom. IPone, iPad and Mac users in the country can no longer register in ADP, and existing users must manually disable it to retain access to ICLOUD.
The United States National Intelligence Director, Tulsi Gabbard, warned that the demands of the United Kingdom can violate the law of the cloud, which limits that foreign governments directly access the encrypted data stored by US companies.
American legislators warn about freedom of expression and privacy risks
Earlier this month, Apple challenged the legality of access demands from the United Kingdom government, arguing that compliance would endanger user privacy and establish a dangerous precedent.
“There is no reason why the United Kingdom [government] The authority to decide for the citizens of the world should have if they can take advantage of the proven security benefits that flow from the end -to -end encryption, ”Apple wrote in a statement to Parliament. The declaration, issued in response to the amendments proposed to the United Kingdom's Research Powers Law, did not directly confirm the existence of the Technical Capacity Notice.
Gabbard has also raised concerns about the effective order of the GAG, the 2016 Investigation Powers Law imposes on Apple, which was repeated by a bipartisan group of US legislators this week. They have urged the United Kingdom to “eliminate the layer of secret” around the order, claiming that it is “violating the rights of expression of US companies and harms the power and duty of the Congress to carry out supervision on national security matters.”
According to President Donald Trump's first mandate as president, the FBI protested for the protection of advanced data on similar concerns regarding the inability of the application of the law to access encrypted data, a barrier that the United Kingdom is now trying to ignore. Meanwhile, technological companies such as Apple warn that creating a rear door would increase the risk of abuse by criminals and authoritarian governments equally.
