Apple Fights Secret UK Government Backdoor Order as Britons Lose Access To Advanced iCloud Encryption

Apple has quietly withdrawn its most advanced iCloud encryption from new UK customers after the Home Office reportedly insisted on a way to access Britons' encrypted backups, prompting the iPhone maker to challenge a secret government order before Britain's surveillance court.

Apple filed a complaint last month with the UK's Investigatory Powers Tribunal after the Home Office reportedly issued a revised demand requiring the company to maintain the capability to access encrypted iCloud backups belonging to British users. The reported order followed an earlier request that would have extended beyond the UK before it was withdrawn.

Apple Takes Latest Dispute to Tribunal

The case centres on a Technical Capability Notice, or TCN, issued under the UK's Investigatory Powers Act 2016. The law allows the government, subject to legal oversight, to require communications and technology companies to maintain technical capabilities that support lawful interception warrants and other authorised investigations.

Technical Capability Notices are subject to strict secrecy provisions. Companies that receive them are generally prohibited from confirming whether they have been served with such an order, with many disputes emerging only through court filings or media reports.

Apple's latest complaint challenges the reported UK-only notice before the Investigatory Powers Tribunal, the specialist court responsible for hearing complaints involving Britain's surveillance powers.

The reported order follows an earlier version that, according to multiple reports, could have affected encrypted iCloud data belonging to users outside Britain. That broader request was later withdrawn after objections from Washington.

Neither Apple nor the UK Home Office has confirmed the existence of any Technical Capability Notice.

UK Users Continue Without Advanced Data Protection

The legal dispute has already changed how iCloud security works for Apple customers in Britain. In February 2025, Apple stopped offering Advanced Data Protection (ADP) to new UK users rather than continue providing the optional end-to-end encrypted iCloud service under the reported government requirements.

Advanced Data Protection extends end-to-end encryption to additional iCloud categories including iCloud Backup, iCloud Drive, Photos, Notes, Reminders, Safari Bookmarks, Siri Shortcuts, Voice Memos, Wallet Passes and Freeform. Without ADP, those categories fall under Apple's Standard Data Protection model, meaning Apple retains the encryption keys and can respond to valid legal requests for customer data.

Apple said the change does not affect services that remain end-to-end encrypted by default, including iMessage, FaceTime, iCloud Keychain and Health data. 'We are deeply disappointed that our customers in the UK will no longer have the option to enable Advanced Data Protection, especially given the continuing rise of data breaches and other threats to customer privacy,' Apple said in a support notice announcing the change.

The company also reiterated its long-standing position on government access. 'As we have said many times before, we have never built a backdoor or master key to any of our products or services and we never will,' Apple said.

The company confirmed that Advanced Data Protection continues to be available everywhere else in the world.

Privacy Campaigners Join the Legal Fight

Apple's challenge runs alongside separate legal action brought by privacy organisations including Privacy International and Liberty, which argue both the reported notice served on Apple and the wider legal framework governing Technical Capability Notices should be scrutinised by the tribunal. Privacy International said its case challenges the legality, necessity and secrecy surrounding the reported notice, arguing that the public has a legitimate interest in understanding how the surveillance powers are used.

The organisation has also sought greater openness in the tribunal's proceedings. While much of the litigation remains subject to statutory secrecy, the tribunal has previously directed the parties to agree a set of 'assumed facts' so parts of the dispute can be heard publicly where possible.

The case has attracted significant attention from encryption and privacy specialists since the Investigatory Powers Act came into force, with campaigners warning that any requirement to weaken encrypted services could have implications beyond Britain.

No timetable has been announced for a final ruling. Until the tribunal reaches a decision, UK Apple customers remain unable to activate Advanced Data Protection, making Britain the only country where users cannot opt into Apple's highest level of iCloud encryption for backups, photos and several other categories of cloud data.