The United Kingdom has withdrawn its request for special access—commonly referred to as a “backdoor”—to Apple’s cloud systems, following negotiations involving the Trump administration, U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard announced.

In a post shared on the X platform, Gabbard detailed the outcome of the talks, emphasizing that the U.K.’s decision safeguards American users’ data privacy and civil liberties. “Through close collaboration with our U.K. partners, alongside President Trump and Vice President JD Vance, we’ve ensured that Americans’ private data remains protected—and that our constitutional rights are not compromised,” Gabbard wrote. “As a result, the U.K. has agreed to drop its mandate for Apple to create a backdoor, which would have granted access to the encrypted data of U.S. citizens and undermined core civil liberties.”

This development marks a critical turning point in a months-long standoff that began when the British government secretly pressed Apple to provide authorities with access to encrypted iCloud data—including information from users worldwide who had enabled Apple’s Advanced Data Protection (ADP) feature. ADP, an optional security tool, uses end-to-end encryption to ensure only users can access their files stored on Apple’s cloud servers, effectively blocking third parties (including tech companies and governments) from accessing the data without explicit user permission.

The U.K.’s initial demand, first reported by The Washington Post in February, was issued under the country’s Investigatory Powers Act 2016—often dubbed the “Snoopers’ Charter” by privacy advocates. The request sparked global backlash from cybersecurity experts and privacy groups, who warned that creating a backdoor for the U.K. would set a dangerous precedent: not only would it weaken encryption standards universally, but it could also embolden other governments to make similar demands for access to user data across different tech platforms.

In response to the U.K.’s mandate earlier this year, Apple took immediate action to protect ADP users: it suspended the feature for new U.K. customers, preventing them from enabling it, and notified existing U.K. users that they would eventually need to disable ADP to comply with the government’s request. The company also challenged the backdoor demand in court; while the case was initially held behind closed doors, it was later ordered to proceed in a public setting to ensure transparency.

As of now, neither Apple nor the U.K. Home Office— which led the push for the backdoor on behalf of the British government—has publicly commented on the U.K.’s decision to drop the request. Olivia Coleman, press secretary for the U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence, directed inquiries to a February letter sent to Senator Ron Wyden and Representative Andy Biggs, though the contents of that letter were not immediately disclosed.

Apple has long maintained a firm stance against creating backdoors for its products or services. The company previously told TechCrunch, “We have never built a backdoor or master key to any of our products or services—and we never will.” This position aligns with its broader commitment to user privacy, which has become a key differentiator for Apple amid growing global debates over data security and government access to personal information.

The U.K.’s reversal is seen as a win for privacy advocates, who have argued that backdoors undermine the very foundations of digital security. For Apple, the outcome allows it to potentially reinstate ADP for U.K. users in the future, restoring a feature that many rely on to protect sensitive data such as photos, messages, and health records. As cybersecurity and privacy remain top priorities for tech companies and governments alike, this resolution may also influence how future disputes over data access are negotiated on the global stage.