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Apple challenges UK demand for back door access to encrypted iCloud data
The new legal complaint was filed after the UK Home Office issued a second request and a technical capability notice that Apple says targets powers under the Investigatory Powers Act.
Apple has filed a legal challenge in the UK against a government demand for back door access to encrypted iCloud data for British users, according to the Guardian Business. The company launched the complaint last month at the Investigatory Powers Tribunal, an independent court that can assess claims that UK intelligence services acted unlawfully.
The filing follows a second request from the UK Home Office to Apple for access to encrypted iCloud data, alongside a court-issued order, the report said. Britain previously backed down on an earlier demand for access to data from UK and US customers after a transatlantic dispute over encryption.
The Guardian Business reports that UK authorities later issued a new technical capability notice to Apple that it says did not apply to American users. Apple is seeking to challenge what it characterizes as the UK government’s authority to issue technical capability notices under the UK Investigatory Powers Act.
The UK law compels companies to provide information to law enforcement in cases including terrorism and child sexual abuse, which can include orders for access to customer data even when it is protected by encryption, the outlet said. The tribunal also sent an order giving notice of Apple’s complaint to the human rights group Privacy International and scheduled a case management hearing to address how the related complaints should be handled.