Apple has launched a fresh legal challenge against the U.K. government’s attempt to compel the company to provide access to encrypted data belonging to British users, reopening a high-profile dispute over privacy, national security and law enforcement powers.
The latest case comes about a year after a previous confrontation between Apple and the U.K. government, when authorities sought access to encrypted data belonging to both British and American users. That earlier demand was ultimately withdrawn following interventions by U.S. President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, according to previous statements by former U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.
Apple confirmed to CNBC that it has filed the new legal challenge but declined to comment further on the proceedings.
The U.K. Home Office also declined to discuss the case, but a spokesperson said: “The UK supports strong encryption and robust privacy protections, but it is also vital that law enforcement can access communications when necessary and proportionate to protect the public from terrorism, serious crime, and child sexual abuse.”
The department added that the U.K.’s Investigatory Powers Act provides safeguards and independent judicial oversight while enabling authorities to obtain access when legally justified.
The renewed legal action stems from the British government’s continued efforts to obtain access to encrypted cloud data under powers granted by the Investigatory Powers Act.
According to CNBC, the Home Office initially issued a notice in early 2025 requiring Apple to create a technical mechanism that would enable authorities to access fully encrypted material stored through the company’s cloud services. That request reportedly covered both British and U.S. users, triggering concerns in Washington over the possibility that a foreign government could compel an American technology company to weaken the security of its products.
Following diplomatic interventions from Trump and Vance, the U.K. withdrew that broader demand. However, the Financial Times later reported that the Home Office issued a revised notice in September seeking access only to encrypted data belonging to British users.
The latest legal challenge suggests Apple continues to oppose even the narrower request.
Apple has consistently argued that creating any form of government access mechanism would weaken security for all users. After the original dispute, the company disabled new enrollments in its Advanced Data Protection (ADP) service for users in the United Kingdom. Apple also said existing U.K. users would eventually have to disable the feature because it could no longer offer the service under the government’s requirements.
At the time, Apple said it was “gravely disappointed” that British customers would lose access to one of its strongest privacy protections.
“We are gravely disappointed that the protections provided by ADP are not available to our customers in the UK given the continuing rise of data breaches and other threats to customer privacy,” the company said.
Apple reiterated its long-standing position that it would never build a universal access mechanism for its products.
“As we have said many times before, we have never built a backdoor or master key to any of our products or services and we never will,” it said.
The dispute is the UK’s episode of the continuing global debate over end-to-end encryption. Technology companies believe that strong encryption protects users against cybercriminals, identity theft and state-sponsored hacking, and that introducing exceptional access for governments would inevitably create vulnerabilities that malicious actors could exploit.
Law enforcement agencies, however, contend that encryption increasingly prevents investigators from accessing critical evidence in cases involving terrorism, organized crime and child exploitation, even when they have obtained lawful warrants.
The U.K.’s Investigatory Powers Act is among the world’s most expansive legal frameworks governing surveillance and government access to communications, making Britain a focal point in the broader international debate over digital privacy.
Legal experts say narrowing the government’s request to British users may reduce diplomatic tensions but is unlikely to eliminate broader concerns in the United States.
Andrew Fremlin-Key, a partner at law firm Withers specializing in media and information law, said the original demand created a “transatlantic row” because it sought access extending beyond British citizens.
“Restricting the new notice to British users may reduce that conflict, but it is unlikely to eliminate U.S. concerns about a foreign government requiring an American company to weaken the security of its technology,” he told CNBC.
The case is being closely watched across the technology industry because its outcome could influence how governments around the world seek access to encrypted communications and cloud data.
