What makes it worse is the underhand way the UK attempted to put these new rules in place. While we know Apple ceased offering Advanced Data Protection in the UK in response to these demands in 2025 — and opposed the demands at the time — we don’t know what arguments were made. The US said last year the order was being dropped, but Apple is now returning to court to fight a renewed attempt.
When the government issued the euphemistically-named “Technical Capability Notice” to Apple requiring backdoor access to encrypted iCloud data, it not only prohibited Apple from disclosing the order, but “most of the British public (55%) were unaware it had happened at all.” That’s because the UK kept it all out of sight. Privacy International and Liberty are also challenging the use of Technical Capability Notices.
The UK public does not agree with its leaders
CDT polled 2,000 people in the UK to find out if they supported the government’s efforts to quash encryption with dangerous backdoors. Just 12% of respondents agreed the government should have the power to access private data; the vast majority opposed the idea.
The nature of the government’s approach is that UK citizens will not be told if they’re being subjected to surveillance. That really offends people, the survey says; 87% think the government should be legally obliged to tell people when their private conversations have been reviewed.
