US Senator Ron Wyden and Member of Congress Andy Biggs are urging the US Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, to oppose the UK’s request for an iCloud backdoor.
With reports suggesting the UK government has ordered the iPhone maker to weaken its encryption under the Investigatory Powers Act 2016, the move has been described by the pair as an effort to “facilitate government spying” – they explain how Apple is “gagged from acknowledging that it received such an order.”.
Yesterday, 109 civil society organizations, companies and cybersecurity experts also signed a joint letter urging the UK Home Office to reverse its request.
They argue that, if Apple were to comply with the UK’s demand, it would weaken US cybersecurity, jeopardizing both citizens’ and government data.
Gabbard is asked to reconsider US-UK cybersecurity arrangements and intelligence sharing if Britain does not reverse its request, and is reminded of her confirmation hearing speech, in which she said: “backdoors lead down a dangerous path that can undermine Americans' Fourth Amendment rights and civil liberties.”.
