- Google confirmed it has not received any U.K. order requiring an encryption backdoor for user data.
- The disclosure follows reports that the U.K. sought a secret court order forcing Apple to provide access to encrypted iCloud backups.
- Under U.K. law, companies receiving such orders cannot reveal their existence; Apple is challenging the order in court.
- Senator Ron Wyden has asked U.S. intelligence officials to assess the risks posed by U.K. surveillance demands on American tech firms.
The U.K. government is reportedly backing away from its attempt to force Apple to create a secret encryption backdoor for law enforcement after facing strong opposition from U.S. officials. Now, a new disclosure sheds light on whether other tech companies have faced similar demands.
Google has confirmed it has not received any order from the U.K. government requiring it to weaken or bypass encryption protections on user data. The confirmation comes after U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR), a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, pressed major technology firms to reveal whether they had been targeted under the U.K.’s surveillance powers.
Earlier this year, The Washington Post reported that Britain’s Home Office had secretly sought a court order compelling Apple to provide access to end-to-end encrypted iCloud backups worldwide.
Apple encrypts this data so that even the company cannot access customer information. Privacy advocates warned that such a mandate could have far-reaching consequences for user security around the globe.
Under the U.K.’s surveillance laws, companies served with so-called “technical capabilities notices” are legally barred from acknowledging the existence of such orders. Apple has challenged the legality of the reported order in court.
In March, Meta told Wyden’s office that it had not received any order to compromise encryption on WhatsApp or Messenger. Google initially declined to answer Wyden directly, noting that the law prohibits disclosure if such a notice exists.
However, the company stated that it has never created a mechanism or backdoor to bypass end-to-end encryption in any of its products and confirmed that it has not been served with a technical capabilities notice from the U.K. government.
Wyden has called on U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard to publicly assess the national security implications of the U.K.’s surveillance regime and its reported secret demands on U.S. technology firms.
Apple’s legal fight over the secret order remains ongoing, and the U.K. Home Office has declined to comment.
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