U.S. politicians ask chief of intelligence to act on UK’s demand for backdoor

United States Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Representative Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) have pleaded to Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard to protect Americans’ communications from the United Kingdom’s order to create a backdoor that offers access to encrypted backups that are stored on Apple devices.

Last week, anonymous sources told The Washington Post and the BBC that the United Kingdom’s government secretly ordered Apple to create a backdoor to access users’ end-to-end encrypted backups.

This demand was made by appealing to the Investigatory Powers Act (IPA), a law that compels tech companies to provide information to law enforcement agencies. Apple can appeal to this decision, but not before implementing the government’s demand.

The UK’s attempt to access protected user information on Apple devices has caught the attention of U.S. Senator Ron Wyden and Representative Andy Biggs. They not only fear for the privacy of American citizens and government institutions, but also the United States’ national security.

“If Apple is forced to build a backdoor in its products, that backdoor will end up in Americans’ phones, tablets, and computers, undermining the security of Americans’ data, as well as of the countless federal, state and local government agencies that entrust sensitive data to Apple products,” the politicians state in a letter that’s addressed to Tulsi Gabbard, the Director of National Intelligence.

Senator Wyden and Representative Biggs urge Gabbard to give the UK government an ultimatum: to let the order to create a backdoor for Apple devices slide, or to face ‘serious consequences’.

“While the UK has been a trusted ally, the U.S. government must not permit what is effectively a foreign cyberattack waged through political means. If the UK does not immediately reverse this dangerous effort, we urge you to reevaluate U.S. - UK cybersecurity arrangements and programs as well as U.S. intelligence sharing with the UK,” the politicians suggest.

Human rights groups like Big Brother Watch and Privacy International were appalled by the United Kingdom government’s demand, calling it “disproportionate and unnecessary” and “an unprecedented attack on privacy rights that has no place in any democracy”.