The UK government recently issued Apple with a “Technical Capability Notice” which would have resulted in a significant weakening of security on iCloud+ accounts. In response, Apple says it will withdraw the heightened security for UK users rather than weaken security globally.
The UK government’s request would have resulted in the creation of a security gap that would render many of the data protection tools we rely on useless on a global scale.
In a statement to Bloomberg, Apple said:
We are gravely disappointed that the protections provided by ADP will not be available to our customers in the UK given the continuing rise of data breaches and other threats to customer privacy,”
It should be noted that Apple says it cannot disable the setting for all users. So, it is asking users to turn the setting off themselves.
New Apple users in the UK have not had access to Advanced Data Protection. But Apple will start disabling access to the setting for all users.
The UK government, it seems, issued an ultimatum to Apple. Rather than acquiesce, Apple responded by not weakening the service globally. However it means users in the UK now miss out on an important data privacy feature.
Australian governments have been looking for ways to access encrypted communications and data for several years but has not gone as far as the UK to the best of my knowledge.
Apple CEO Tim Cook has said that data privacy is an essential human right. This move shows he is putting his money where his mouth is.
However, we should also note that it its quest to bring Apple Intelligence to China that Apple is prepared to censor search results delivered to Chinese users in China.
Apple walks a very thin tightrope when managing its obligations in a global market.
Anthony is the founder of Australian Apple News. He is a long-time Apple user and former editor of Australian Macworld. He has contributed to many technology magazines and newspapers as well as appearing regularly on radio and occasionally on TV.