If the UK Home Office refused an update under the proposed changes to existing laws, then it could not be released anywhere else and the public wouldn’t be informed.
The Government is looking to update the Investigatory powers Act (IPA) 2016
The Home Office stated that they support privacy-focused technology but also added that they must keep the country safe.
A spokesperson for the government said: “We’ve always been clear about our support of technological innovation, private and secure communication technologies, including end to end encryption, but we cannot do this at the cost of public safety.”
Tomorrow, the House of Lords will debate proposed changes.
Apple claims that the UK government has “unprecedentedly overreached” in its actions.
Apple said in a press release that it was “deeply concerned” about the proposed changes to the Investigatory powers Act (IPA), which are now being considered by Parliament. These amendments could put users’ privacy and safety at risk.
The UK government could secretly try to veto any new user protections worldwide, stopping us from offering them to our customers.
The Home Office said: “It’s critical that decisions regarding lawful access to protect the country against child sexual abusers or terrorists are made by those who have democratic accountability and are approved by Parliament.”
Apple has not been the first to criticize proposals that would expand its scope. The existing Act is referred to as a “snoopers’ charter” by some critics.
In July 2023 , the tech giant announced that it would be considering pulling Facetime and iMessage services from the UK in order to protect future security.
The proposed UK law would cover all Apple products, not just FaceTime or iMessage.
In January, civil rights groups such as Big Brother Watch Liberty, Open Rights Group, and Privacy International released a joint press release opposing certain parts of the bill.
The groups expressed concern that the proposed changes “would force technology companies, even those located overseas, to notify the government about any plans they have to improve privacy or security measures on their platforms, so the government can serve a notice in order to prevent such changes”.
The group added that this would “effectively transform private companies into the arms of the state of surveillance and undermine the security of devices, the internet and other technologies.”
The proposed amendments are a result of a review and update of existing legislation. They include updates on the collection of information by intelligence agencies, and the use internet connection records.