“In recent months, I have worked closely with our UK partners, alongside @POTUS and @VP, to ensure the privacy of Americans’ data is maintained and that our Constitutional rights are upheld,” Gabbard shared on X this past Monday. “Consequently, the UK has agreed to eliminate their requirement for Apple to provide a ‘backdoor’ that could have accessed the encrypted data of American citizens and infringed upon our civil liberties.”

This development comes after the UK issued a covert order in January, requesting Apple to grant backdoor access to encrypted files uploaded by users globally. In response, Apple halted new user sign-ups in the UK for its Advanced Data Protection (ADP) encrypted iCloud service and contested the order, successfully gaining the ability to publicly address the situation in April. Earlier this year, US authorities began investigating whether the UK order breached the bilateral CLOUD Act agreement, which prevents the UK and US from placing data requests upon each other.

This pressure from the United States led to reports last month indicating that the UK would retract its demands to Apple. An anonymous UK official informed the Financial Times that the UK was in a difficult position and seeking a resolution. While it remains uncertain if the UK will pursue new negotiations with Apple that respect American data, an unnamed US official conveyed to The Financial Times that any such negotiations would not align with the amended agreement.

With the mandate reportedly revoked, it is yet to be seen if Apple will reinstate its ADP service access in the UK. We have contacted Apple for their comments on the issue. The UK Home Office has declined to provide any remarks.