UK government renews demand for Apple iCloud encrypted data access

"Trump described the UK's earlier demands as 'something that you hear about with China' - and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is inclined to agree, saying that the new TCN is just as dangerous as the first. "As we've said time and time again, any backdoor built for the government puts everyone at greater risk of hacking, identity theft, and fraud," said EFF security and privacy activist Thorin Klosowski."

"Earlier this year, it backed down on the issue after a furious response from Donald Trump. Apple, meanwhile, withdrew its most secure cloud storage service, iCloud Advanced Data Protection, from the UK in response. Now, though, according to the Financial Times, the government is once again asking for access. This time, however, the technical capability notice (TCN) would apply only to the data of British citizens, rather than worldwide."

UK authorities have renewed a Technical Capability Notice (TCN) requesting Apple to enable government access to encrypted iCloud data. The revised TCN would apply only to British citizens' data rather than worldwide. Apple previously withdrew iCloud Advanced Data Protection from the UK after earlier demands provoked political backlash. Both Apple and the Home Office are legally barred from commenting on TCNs issued under the Investigatory Powers Act. Privacy advocates warn that any engineered backdoor increases risks of hacking, identity theft, and fraud, and could set a precedent enabling other governments to demand comparable access. Industry groups warn of global security implications from introduced vulnerabilities.

Read at IT Pro