Apple challenges UK's second iCloud backdoor demand
Original: Apple challenges UK government’s latest demand for iCloud backdoor: report
Why This Matters
The case sets a critical legal precedent for government access to end-to-end encrypted cloud data globally.
Apple has filed a complaint with the UK's Investigatory Powers Tribunal against a second government 'technical capability notice' demanding access to encrypted iCloud data. The UK issued this second order in October 2025, following a similar order in early 2025 that was later dropped after U.S. intervention.
According to the Financial Times, Apple has filed a legal challenge with the UK's Investigatory Powers Tribunal — a court handling government surveillance cases — against a second 'technical capability notice' issued by the UK government in October 2025. This type of secret legal order compels companies to provide access to user data, even when encrypted. Critics describe such notices as equivalent to demanding a backdoor into iCloud backups protected by Advanced Data Protection (ADP), Apple's end-to-end encryption feature that makes data inaccessible to anyone, including Apple itself. The current challenge follows a similar dispute that began in early 2025, when London issued an initial secret order targeting encrypted iCloud backups. That first order was dropped following intervention by the Trump administration. In response to the first order, Apple removed the ability for UK users to enable ADP. The UK subsequently issued a second order, which Apple is now contesting in court. Apple did not respond to TechCrunch's request for comment.