Two-Tier Encryption in the UK
The Post reported that UK security officials had issued such a TCN, in secret, in January 2025, requesting that Apple create a way to access encrypted iCloud data belonging not just to UK users, but to Apple users worldwide. The chutzpah of it all was astonishing.
Apple’s position (privately, since they were prohibited from commenting publicly on the reported TCN) showed fidelity to its previous stance: deliberately weakening end-to-end encryption, for whatever purpose or for whomever the intended beneficiary, would make every user less secure. So the dispute became the UK government saying it needed access, Apple saying it couldn’t decrypt the data, and the UK effectively replying: then change the system so that you can.
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Faced with a legal order that would have required it to change the security architecture on which ADP depended, Apple found a third option: stop offering the feature that made this dilemma exist in the first place. It reverted affected UK iCloud data to Standard Data Protection, where Apple does hold the keys and can respond to lawful legal process (except the baseline categories that stay end-to-end encrypted either way). This satisfied the underlying legal requirement without ever building a ‘backdoor’.
Apple said the decision to withdraw ADP in the UK left them “gravely disappointed”. There was, however, an important disclaimer. Apple only stopped allowing new UK users to turn on Advanced Data Protection.
For users in the UK who have already enabled Advanced Data Protection, Apple will soon provide additional guidance. Apple cannot disable ADP automatically for these users. Instead, UK users will be given a period of time to disable the feature themselves to keep using their iCloud account.
I wonder whether Apple will actually lock users out of their accounts if they don’t turn off ADP or whether they’ll quietly not enforce it like with Emergency SOS via satellite.
In July 2026, Apple lodged a fresh complaint at the Investigatory Powers Tribunal, which became public the following month. Then, on the 11th of September 2026, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (a Democrat) and Republican Congressman Warren Davidson called on the UK’s Investigatory Powers Tribunal to open up its proceedings concerning Apple’s encrypted-data dispute.
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On the 17th of September The Daily Telegraph reported that Apple had asked the Investigatory Powers Tribunal to remove restrictions that gag them from confirming the existence of the reported TCN.
Previously:
- UK Again Wants iCloud Backdoor
- UK Online Safety Act
- UK Backing Down on Apple Encryption Backdoor
- Apple Pulls iCloud Advanced Data Protection From UK
- UK Orders Apple to Break iCloud Advanced Data Protection
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> …Senator Ron Wyden (a Democrat) and Republican Congressman Warren Davidson called on the UK’s Investigatory Powers Tribunal to open up its proceedings concerning Apple’s encrypted-data dispute.
This is rich coming from the country that (seemingly) attempts to intercept every piece of digital data that they can across the globe.
Let's not be naive and understand that it is a well-documented and consistent strategy for the US to get one of it's five-eyes partners to do the dirty work so the US can receive the benefits.
There has been many instances where something that may seem unpalatable to US politicians or citizens is instead done in a back-door manner by a five-eyes partner, under the command of US intelligence or military.
It's more than likely that the UK having access to unencrypted iCloud data of all users worldwide is being done at the behest of the US. Once the UK has the information, the US (and also Australia, Canada and New Zealand) can also have unrestricted access to it via the intelligence sharing agreements of the Five Eyes partnership.
"This is rich coming from the country that (seemingly) attempts to intercept every piece of digital data that they can across the globe."
That obviously also sucks, but intercepting data and denying people access to working end-to-end encryption for their private data are two different things.
So, are they hypocritical? Sure. But are they correct in this case? Yes! This is some bullshit from the UK (and that also applies to similar EU attempts), particularly given all the data leaks we have right now.
It's pretty obvious that, with the advent of strong LLMs, unencrypted data is always unsafe.
Huh, I'd not realised that UK folks who'd turned on ADP still had that enabled. That's an interesting, and worrying, wrinkle in the story. That Apple Support page was added around this time last year, so I'm wondering how much grace time those folks have left before Apple makes the decision for them, and potentially wipes their iCloud data in the process? I'd imagine that there's good reason(s) for those people to have enabled ADP in the first place, so that could get sticky for both Apple and perhaps the UK government as well.
Yup, ADP still enabled here, though there's a message saying it's no longer available in Settings. Apple haven't got around to forcing it off yet.
Of course, I'm still "deeply disappointed" with Apple's cowardice in caving to the demands of an effete "Liberal" democracy, with no constitution of and by the people, and a highly centralised executive that still holds to a "good chaps" theory of government. And that includes the IPT, which is basically just spooks and friends of spooks. If you're living on this dank little island of ours, definitely support Liberty and the Open Rights Group among others.
Note that it is Ron Wyden making the request, so one can't entirely blame "the government" for hypocrisy, as he has consistently done what he can to fight it. He's about the only person in government right now I can think of who has both any power to do anything at all, and a consistent will to at least try to do something about privacy, government, and tech corporation overreach.
Not sure what it's really worth in this particular instance, but I felt it was worth at least pointing out.
Secret laws, secret courts and secret gag orders are fundamentally incompatible with the concept of democracy. How can we be informed and vote if we don’t know what the government is doing? Anyone taking part in these should be arrested and receive at the bare minimum a lifetime ban from public office.
