After refusing the UK government’s request to access users’ iPhone backups and iCloud data, Apple has decided to withdraw its Advanced Data Protection (ADP) service from the country. The US tech giant stated, “Our commitment to protecting our users’ personal data at the highest security level continues, and we hope to reintroduce this service in the UK in the future.”

In response to the UK government’s request for access to customer data, Apple has decided to withdraw the most secure cloud storage service from the country. In an announcement made on Friday, the company stated, “We announce that we will no longer be able to offer our Advanced Data Protection (ADP) service in the United Kingdom.”

This system protected user data stored in iCloud with end-to-end encryption. Apple’s move came after the UK government sent a “technical capability notice” to the company following the enactment of the Investigatory Powers Act (IPA) last month.

The IPA, known by critics as the ‘Snooper’s Charter,’ is a regulation the government argues is necessary to investigate crimes such as terrorism and child abuse. Due to the prohibition on companies receiving such notices from the government from publicly disclosing the requests, Apple’s decision implies the company indirectly acknowledges the situation for the first time.

THE BIGGEST ENCRYPTION BATTLE IN THE PAST 10 YEARS
The use of IPA against Apple marks the first time since the law was updated last year, making it the biggest encryption battle in the technology industry in the past decade. Apple stated, “Our commitment to protecting our users’ personal data at the highest security level continues, and we hope to reintroduce this in the UK in the future.” The company also mentioned, “As we have stated numerous times before, we have not created and will never create a ‘backdoor’ or ‘master key’ for any of our products or services.”

UK GOVERNMENT REQUESTED ‘BACKDOOR’ FROM APPLE
The government’s request to Apple for “backdoor” access would have allowed authorities with court approval to access iPhone backups and other iCloud data. Even Apple couldn’t access this data, but under the law, British authorities would be able to access encrypted iCloud data of Apple users anywhere in the world.

TECHNOLOGY SECTOR UNITES AGAINST GOVERNMENT
After the UK government’s request was revealed to the press earlier this month, the technology sector united against the government. Meta’s WhatsApp division head Will Cathcart stated, “If the UK mandates the addition of a global backdoor to Apple’s security systems, it jeopardizes everyone’s safety. A country’s secret decision can put all of us at risk and should be stopped.”

UNPRECEDENTED AUTHORITY OVERREACH
As changes to the IPA law are expected to pass parliament in early 2024, Apple considered the government’s requests as “unprecedented authority overreach” and indicated it could withdraw some services from the country if such interventions continue. Apple’s messaging services iMessage and FaceTime are end-to-end encrypted, and as the government has not made any requests concerning these services, they will continue to be used in the UK.