Apple has launched a legal complaint against the UK government in the latest update in its ongoing feud with the Home Office regarding access to encrypted data.
The US tech giant has launched the complaint in court in response to the Home Office’s repeated demands to allow a ‘backdoor’ to be placed in encrypted Apple user data that would allow law enforcement to access it under certain circumstances.
These demands from the Home Office started early last year, with Apple continuously refusing to break its policy of total encryption.
The Home Office has said in a statement: “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 government’s demands have naturally spurred heavy criticism from advocates for personal privacy, however, it has also been pointed out by encryption experts that these demands are completely unrealistic.
Robin Wilton, the senior director for internet trust at The Internet Society, told UKTN that the government’s request was “illogical”.
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