Apple discontinues the provision of its encryption service Advanced Data Protection (ADP) for iCloud in the UK. The US tech company is responding to a secret order under the Investigatory Powers Act (IPA), known as the "Snooper's Charter." The British legal framework requires companies, among other things, to implement so-called "technical capability notices," which allow authorities — upon judicial order — to access encrypted user data. Since the tech company claims it is being required to create a back door, Apple is now withdrawing the service from the country. The process is the first of its kind since the British law was tightened last year. The extraterritorial powers of the authorities would have allowed access to encrypted iCloud data anywhere in the world. Apple insists it never wants to create a "master key" for its products. Accordingly, it "regrets" that British users can no longer use ADP but maintains its security course. Users who have already activated ADP would need to deactivate the feature to continue using iCloud in the UK. Several industry representatives criticize London's approach. WhatsApp head Will Cathcart warned that a global backdoor requirement in favor of a single government endangers all users. Experts like Aled Lloyd Owen, a professor at the University of Southampton, consider Apple's move "dramatic and unnecessary" because there are reportedly technical compromise solutions. From Apple's perspective, according to insiders, the imposed surveillance is, however, an "unprecedented intrusion," which they are forced to counter with a service shutdown. While iMessage and FaceTime — also with end-to-end encryption — remain usable in the UK, the Computer & Communications Industry Association describes Apple's withdrawal as a "worrisome signal": Instead of pushing for a weakening of encryption, authorities should cooperate with companies to avoid undermining data security. The conflict between state security interests and data protection is central: From Apple's perspective, the opening forced by the authorities leads to greater vulnerability, while the United Kingdom insists on its right to combat terrorism and crime.