Apple has disabled its most secure data storage offering for new customers in the UK instead of giving into a secret government order that could have granted intelligence agencies access to encrypted data of users around the globe.
Advanced Data Protection (ADP) heavily encrypts personal data uploaded and stored in Apple’s Cloud servers. ADP uses end-to-end encryption, which means only the account holder can decrypt the files and no one else can.
If Apple were to execute the secret order, British security services might have had access to the backups of any user worldwide. Further, Apple wouldn’t have been legally allowed to alert users that their encryption was compromised.
“We are gravely disappointed that the protections provided by ADP will not be available to our customers in the UK given the continuing rise of data breaches and other threats to customer privacy,” Apple said in a statement. “Apple remains committed to offering our users the highest level of security for their personal data, and we are hopeful we will able to do so in the future in the United Kingdom.”
For UK users who have not previously enabled ADP, they will no longer have the option to do so.
And for UK users with ADP currently active, Apple may soon have to disable this feature to keep being able to use their iCloud account.
“We have never built a backdoor or master key to any of our products or services and we never will,” Apple said.
The secret order that was given to Apple was under the UK’s Investigatory Powers Act (IPA) of 2016, also known as the Snoopers’ Charter.
The American tech giant has not mentioned the UK Home office’s order because the disclosure would have been a crime. The company suggested to the UK parliament last year that such a demand might come in the future.
The issue is coming at a time when there is growing push-back in the US against regulations being imposed on its tech sector globally, especially in Europe. In a speech at the AI Action Summit in Paris earlier this month, the US vice-president, J.D. Vance, said America was increasingly concerned about it.
“The Trump administration is troubled by reports that some foreign governments are considering tightening the screws on US tech companies with international footprints,” he said.