Apple Withdraws Advanced Data Protection in UK Over Reported Backdoor Order

Apple has withdrawn Advanced Data Protection (ADP) for iCloud in the UK after reports that the British government sought access to encrypted user data under the Investigatory Powers Act. The reported order allegedly demanded broad access to end-to-end encrypted iCloud content, including data belonging to users outside the UK, prompting Apple to remove the feature rather than create a backdoor. Apple said it was disappointed that UK customers would lose the protection at a time of increasing data breaches and privacy threats, and reiterated its long-standing refusal to weaken encryption in its products.

The change affects iCloud categories protected by ADP, including Photos, Notes, Messages backups, and device backups, while other Apple services that use end-to-end encryption in the UK — such as iMessage, FaceTime, password management, and health data — remain unaffected. Existing UK users with ADP enabled will have to disable it manually during a grace period because Apple said it cannot turn the feature off on their behalf. The move has intensified concerns among security and privacy advocates, who warn that lawful-access demands can erode protections relied on by users worldwide.