Apple is taking the UK government to court over a demand that would effectively punch a hole through its encryption protections. The company filed a legal complaint challenging a Technical Capability Notice (TCN) issued by British authorities in January 2025, which ordered Apple to provide access to encrypted iCloud backups.
Rather than quietly comply, Apple chose the nuclear option: it disabled its optional Advanced Data Protection (ADP) feature for UK users entirely.
What the UK actually demanded
The original order wasn’t just about British users. The TCN initially carried a worldwide scope, meaning UK authorities were essentially asking Apple to create a backdoor that could access encrypted data for users globally.
The Investigatory Powers Act, sometimes referred to as the “Snoopers’ Charter,” gives UK authorities the legal framework to issue these notices. In practice, a TCN compels a company to build technical capabilities that allow law enforcement to access communications data.
