The UK Home Office has once again demanded Apple allows it access to encrypted iCloud data.
The Guardian reports that the Home Office issued a Technical Capability Notice to Apple, this time targeting only British users. A Technical Capability Notice is a formal government order that compels tech and telecommunications companies to build or maintain specific technical functions—such as intercepting data or removing encryption protections—so law enforcement can access communications.
In the last round of this ongoing battle, the UK secretly ordered Apple to provide blanket access to protected iCloud backups around the world. Advanced Data Protection (ADP) is Apple’s opt‑in end‑to‑end encryption for iCloud backups, which even Apple itself cannot read. Apple argued that weakening or removing ADP would expose users to data breaches and other threats, and instead chose in January 2025 to withdraw ADP for UK customers rather than build a backdoor, while leaving it available elsewhere.
So, instead of working to keep citizens safe and secure, the Home Office just ended up removing an option for them.
Apple has responded by lodging a complaint with the Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT), seeking to challenge the scope and lawfulness of the government’s powers to issue such notices under the Investigatory Powers Act. The Tribunal is an independent court that has the power to investigate claims that the UK intelligence services have acted unlawfully.
