Britain has backed down on demand to access US Apple user data, says spy chief

The UK has dropped its insistence that Apple allows law enforcement officials "backdoor" access to US customer data, Donald Trump's spy chief, Tulsi Gabbard, has said.

- Robert Booth

The US director of national intelligence posted the claim on X after a months-long dispute involving the iPhone manufacturer, the UK government and the US president. Trump had accused Britain of behaving like China, telling Keir Starmer: "You can't do this."

Neither the Home Office nor Apple are commenting on the alleged agreement, which Gabbard said meant the UK was no longer demanding that Apple "provide a 'backdoor' that would have enabled access to the protected encrypted data of American citizens and encroached on our civil liberties".

The row began when the Home Office issued a "technical capability notice" to Apple under the Investigatory Powers Act, which requires companies to assist law enforcement in providing evidence. Apple launched a legal challenge, which the Home Office wanted kept secret but judges ruled could be made public.