The US spy chief confirmed the UK has abandoned its push for an Apple backdoor, easing tech industry concerns over encryption.
U.S. National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard said the United Kingdom has relinquished its request for a “backdoor” or special access to Apple’s cloud systems following negotiations with the Trump administration.
In a post on X, Gabbard stated that the U.K. has consented to rescind its requirement for Apple to provide a “back door” that would have allowed access to American citizens’ protected, encrypted data and infringed upon our civil liberties.
Additionally, she asserted that she collaborated with Vice President JD Vance and President Donald Trump during the negotiations.
This is the most recent (and unexpected) development in a months-long saga that has seen the British government secretly requesting access to the encrypted data of iCloud users, essentially requesting a backdoor, from Apple.
This request was made from anywhere worldwide, particularly for those who have enabled Advanced Data Protection (ADP), an opt-in security feature.
ADP activates end-to-end encryption for iCloud, ensuring only users can access the files stored on Apple’s cloud servers.
In February, The Washington Post reported the legal demand, which was made under the U.K.’s Investigatory Powers Act 2016, also known as the Snoopers’ Charter.
The U.K. government’s request elicited worldwide outrage and condemnation from privacy and security experts. They contended that if the government achieved its desired outcome, it would undermine privacy for the entire world and provide a precedent for other governments to make similar demands, even in the context of other companies’ technologies.
Apple initially responded by withdrawing ADP from the U.K., which resulted in the inability of new users to activate it.
The organization also stated that it would assist current users who “will eventually need to disable this security feature.”
In the interim, Apple also reportedly challenged the backdoor mandate in court, a case that was initially kept confidential but was later determined to be public.
Apple and the U.K. Home Office, which initiated the demand on behalf of the British government, did not respond to inquiries for comment.
Olivia Coleman, the press secretary of the U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence, referenced a February letter to Sen. Wyden and Rep. Biggs.
Apple has previously stated to TechCrunch that it has “never built a backdoor or master key” to any of its products or services and will not do so in the future.