Tulsi Gabbard, the US National Intelligence director, has expressed her surprise at not being briefed in advance regarding the UK government’s request to access encrypted data from Apple customers worldwide. The UK government had made a demand earlier this year to be able to view data that even Apple itself cannot access, prompting the tech giant to remove its highest level data security tool from its UK customers.
In response to the UK government’s request under the Investigatory Powers Act, Apple withdrew its Advanced Data Protection (ADP) tool from the UK market. This tool allowed only the account holders to view their stored photos and documents through end-to-end encryption. Breaking its encryption systems to fulfill the UK demand would go against Apple’s policy of never compromising data security.
Despite the encryption of UK users’ data, Apple would still be able to access it upon receiving a warrant. Tulsi Gabbard is seeking further information from US agencies regarding the reported demand by the UK government. The director views the UK’s actions as potentially violating the privacy of US citizens and is exploring whether there was a breach of an agreement between the US and the UK regarding data requests.
While Apple has not provided a comment on the situation, the Home Office has directed inquiries to security minister Dan Jarvis, who emphasized the importance of balancing privacy and security measures. Jarvis refrained from confirming or denying the existence of any notices under the Investigatory Powers Act, citing the sensitivity of operational matters
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