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House Chairs Seek UK Briefing on Apple Encryption Order, Set March 11 Deadline

The committees want clarity on the UK technical notice to Apple requiring access to encrypted iCloud data.

Overview

  • U.S. House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan and Foreign Affairs Chair Brian Mast asked the UK to brief them on its order directing Apple to provide a backdoor to encrypted user data.
  • Their letter requests the Home Office and UK Embassy arrange the briefing by 10:00 a.m. ET on March 11, 2026.
  • The request centers on a UK Technical Capability Notice issued to Apple, which lawmakers say must be understood for an informed public debate.
  • Apple has stated it will not build backdoors, disabled Advanced Data Protection in the UK, and has challenged the UK order at the Investigatory Powers Tribunal.
  • U.S. intelligence chief Tulsi Gabbard said in August 2025 that Britain dropped a broader demand, while subsequent reporting described continued UK efforts to access British citizens’ cloud backups.