Apple is refusing to let the British government break into its users’ encrypted cloud data. The company has just launched a new legal challenge against the government over secret demands that would force it to create a back door into iCloud backups (via Financial Times).
The legal complaint was filed last month with the Investigatory Powers Tribunal, an independent court that reviews complaints regarding British intelligence agencies and government surveillance. The dispute centres on a Technical Capability Notice issued under the UK’s Investigatory Powers Act. This law allows government officials to secretly order tech platforms to hand over user information, even if that data is guarded by advanced security measures.
Having covered tech privacy battles for over a decade, I can tell you that this high-stakes standoff between Cupertino and Whitehall is turning out to be one of the most important digital rights cases of the decade.
This latest filing is the second time Apple has challenged the British government over its cloud backup policies. The fight first began in early 2025, when the UK Home Office secretly ordered Apple to give law enforcement a way to bypass encryption on iCloud backups worldwide.
Because of how modern end-to-end encryption works, Apple does not store the security keys needed to unlock this data. Complying with the order would have forced Apple to redesign its entire cloud infrastructure to weaken security for hundreds of millions of users across the globe.
That initial order triggered an international political battle between London and Washington. American officials pushed back hard against Britain’s attempt to spy on US citizens. President Donald Trump even compared the UK demand to policies used by totalitarian states. Faced with intense diplomatic pressure, British authorities backed down from demanding access to global user accounts.
However, instead of dropping the idea completely, the UK Home Office issued a revised demand focused solely on accounts owned by British users.
The tribunal has notified digital privacy organisations including Privacy International and Liberty about Apple’s lawsuit. Both civil liberties groups are already fighting similar government surveillance demands in court.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for next month to figure out how these legal challenges will proceed together.
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