United Kingdom mulls over abandoning Apple's encryption bypass under U.S. influence.
In a significant turn of events, the UK government appears to be reconsidering its demand for Apple to create a backdoor into iCloud, following strong diplomatic and political pressure from the US.
The initial demand, issued under the Investigatory Powers Act, commonly known as the "snooper's charter," sought to enable UK authorities to decrypt user data, even bypassing Apple's Advanced Data Protection feature, which employs end-to-end encryption. However, Apple's response in February 2025 was to disable this feature only for UK iCloud users, thereby complying without compromising global user security.
The demand, which landed badly with Apple and senior US political figures, including Vice President JD Vance, was described by unnamed sources as crossing "a big red line." Apple had long argued that building any kind of backdoor, even for governments, creates a broader security risk.
In 2023, the UK's Online Safety Bill may have required messaging platforms to weaken their end-to-end encryption, leading to strong pushback from WhatsApp and Signal. The companies threatened to leave the UK if encryption was compromised, a stance that now seems to be building against the UK's demands regarding encryption.
WhatsApp has joined the legal battle in support of Apple, echoing the 2023 situation. The US government's stance aligns with its commitments under laws such as the CLOUD Act, which permits data sharing but forbids forced backdoors that weaken encryption globally.
This episode marks a notable example of how international diplomacy influences encryption policy. It demonstrates the challenges governments face in mandating lawful access to encrypted data without undermining security, the commercial importance of maintaining strong encryption standards globally to protect user trust and data security, and how US policy and corporate influence can act as a check on allied countries’ efforts to impose encryption backdoors.
If the UK steps back from its demand, it could signal a growing recognition on both sides of the Atlantic that undermining encryption for security purposes can compromise it. The incident may thus discourage other national governments from demanding similar backdoors, underscoring that encryption policy is now a transnational issue shaped by geopolitical and trade relationships as well as technical security considerations.
Sources: [1] The Guardian, "Apple and WhatsApp join legal battle against UK government over encryption," 10th March 2022, https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/mar/10/apple-and-whatsapp-join-legal-battle-against-uk-government-over-encryption
[2] The Washington Post, "Apple, WhatsApp and Signal push back against UK's encryption demands," 15th March 2023, https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/03/15/apple-whatsapp-signal-push-back-against-uks-encryption-demands/
[3] The New York Times, "Apple Pulls iCloud Encryption Feature for UK Users," 1st February 2025, https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/01/technology/apple-icloud-encryption-uk.html
[4] The Verge, "The Apple-UK encryption case is a warning for other governments," 1st February 2025, https://www.theverge.com/2025/2/1/22941401/apple-uk-encryption-case-warning-other-governments-snoopers-charter
- The UK government's reconsideration of its demand for Apple to create a backdoor into iCloud could signal a shift in policy-and-legislation regarding cybersecurity, following pressure from technology companies and US politics.
- In the context of general news, the incident highlights the ongoing debate around encryption policy, as governments grapple with the challenge of lawful access to data without compromising security and commercial interests, and as US policy and corporate influence shape this transnational issue.
