> Apple did not respond to a request for comment. “We have never built a back door or master key to any of our products, and we never will,” Apple said in February.
This must be some "technically correct" weasel words bullcrap, as without at least equivalent access there is no chance Apple would be operating in China.
I don't get why the UK always does this. it's like GSM encryption all over again. Is it a particularly snoop-ey culture stemming from GCHQ or something?
> The UK official added, this “limits what we’re able to do in the future, particularly in relation to AI regulation.” The Labour government has delayed plans for AI legislation until after May next year.
I assumed they’d only have asked for it if they’d already OKed it with the US, and that it was probably part of a plan to give US access too via 5-eyes sharing.
I really sort of expected that by the time I reached my age that we'd have more policy makers that understood tech a little better. I feel like in the last say 25 or more years ... the needle hasn't moved.
I wonder how this clash is going to turn up. I would hate this development. This proposal is worthy of the Chinese Communist Party, and I am aghast just how many member states are fine with the concept of a preemptive surveillance state and breaking privacy left and right.
Of course, that is what we get for giving Ursula von der Leyen a second term (why??) She already has a reputation from her career in German politics, having earned the nickname Zensursula (censoring Ursula).
Things got so out of control because the UK doesn't have heavily muscled tech emporiums that can spend time in bed with their politicians. US does. But it's a sad world the one where citizens are so helpless against their governments and the corporations.
Say what you will about JD Vance but he has passionately confronted the European elites on their surveillance overreach and clearly it's had an impact.
We may not like everything about the current American administration, but credit where due.
Finally people can breathe easy again and pretend a proprietary walled garden which was already part of prism over a decade ago is actually private and secure.
If the UK wants to snoop they better grovel before US feds like everybody else to get access.
I’m by no means a Trump fan. But I thought it was negligent how the Biden administration didn’t fight for American tech companies internationally and how the prior administration was actively hostile to them.
Too many people here going on about UK politicians which, while problematic, seem mostly powerless in the face of a completely toxic department in the Home Office.
This sort of shit is pure Home Office authoritarian bullshit and the culture there is such that it perpetuates. They seem to be particularly skilled in getting MPs to side with their world view, but it is the Home Office leading this, not the MPs.
See the proscription of Palestine Action for a textbook example of Home Office bullshit.
"Last month, Meta-owned WhatsApp said it would join Apple’s legal challenge, in a rare collaboration between the Silicon Valley rivals".
Apple makes home computers, mobile devices, AV equipment and productivity/multimedia software.
Meta makes social media platforms, and vr headsets. What exactly makes them "rivals"? WhatsApp vs iMessage? They're two big companies in the same sector, sure, but do they really compete against each other in a major way?
The UK is the same country that arrests 12,000 people a year for posting online.
> Now every force in the country has a team sifting through people’s posts trying to determine what crosses an undefined threshold. “It is a complete nightmare,” one officer admits
The specified policy aside, it’s kind of sad to see - the UK after Brexit just doesn’t carry the same weight. It would’ve been a different story if the UK as part of the EU were moving forward with a piece of legislation.
I’m struggling to square Vance and the administration’s position here with the fact that the US IC uses GCHQ to collect on US persons since they’re not allowed to do so directly. Why wouldn’t they want it to be easier for NSA to spy on Americans?
What this type of news shows is that you really can't trust any government or company with your data. So don't give them any data -- only store data on your own hardware and set up your own servers if you really need a "cloud" for your data.
The attack on privacy does kind of make sense when your remember that it is a freaking monarchy with all the inhabitants being subjects.
Probably well deserved to them if it was not contagious in Europe at the moment.
That being said, the crazy thing about this law and the other ones similar is this:
Under the terms of the legislation, recipients of such a notice are unable to discuss the matter publicly, even with customers affected by the order, unless granted permission by the Home Secretary
They always justify everything saying that real world "procedures" should apply to the digital world. But, in most occidental countries, no one is allowed to search your home without you to be aware of it and present if you are capable to do so. Still, strangely, for digital data, the norm is that your data can be raped in your back, without you being aware about it or even in the capacity to challenge that.
I really find that stunning that it is so widely accepted.
The former german Stasi would probably have been proud of all the parlementaries in US, UK and Europe that allowed such things.
UK backing down on Apple encryption backdoor after pressure from US
(arstechnica.com)551 points by azalemeth 21 July 2025 | 421 comments
Comments
This must be some "technically correct" weasel words bullcrap, as without at least equivalent access there is no chance Apple would be operating in China.
What did they mean by this
Turns out it was not 4D chess after all…
https://www.techradar.com/pro/security/the-european-commissi...
I wonder how this clash is going to turn up. I would hate this development. This proposal is worthy of the Chinese Communist Party, and I am aghast just how many member states are fine with the concept of a preemptive surveillance state and breaking privacy left and right.
Of course, that is what we get for giving Ursula von der Leyen a second term (why??) She already has a reputation from her career in German politics, having earned the nickname Zensursula (censoring Ursula).
We may not like everything about the current American administration, but credit where due.
If the UK wants to snoop they better grovel before US feds like everybody else to get access.
Then people wonder why tech embraced Trump.
This sort of shit is pure Home Office authoritarian bullshit and the culture there is such that it perpetuates. They seem to be particularly skilled in getting MPs to side with their world view, but it is the Home Office leading this, not the MPs.
See the proscription of Palestine Action for a textbook example of Home Office bullshit.
Apple makes home computers, mobile devices, AV equipment and productivity/multimedia software.
Meta makes social media platforms, and vr headsets. What exactly makes them "rivals"? WhatsApp vs iMessage? They're two big companies in the same sector, sure, but do they really compete against each other in a major way?
now sod off, as they might say
The UK is the same country that arrests 12,000 people a year for posting online.
> Now every force in the country has a team sifting through people’s posts trying to determine what crosses an undefined threshold. “It is a complete nightmare,” one officer admits
Britain’s police are restricting speech in worrying ways https://www.economist.com/britain/2025/05/15/britains-police... From The Economist
edit: Don't shoot the messenger.
This is extremely ironic (“Americans’ privacy” basically does not exist), but I won't look a gift horse in the mouth.
Probably well deserved to them if it was not contagious in Europe at the moment.
That being said, the crazy thing about this law and the other ones similar is this:
They always justify everything saying that real world "procedures" should apply to the digital world. But, in most occidental countries, no one is allowed to search your home without you to be aware of it and present if you are capable to do so. Still, strangely, for digital data, the norm is that your data can be raped in your back, without you being aware about it or even in the capacity to challenge that.I really find that stunning that it is so widely accepted. The former german Stasi would probably have been proud of all the parlementaries in US, UK and Europe that allowed such things.