Posted on 02/21/2025 9:29:46 AM PST by E. Pluribus Unum
The government now has access to its citizens messages and camera roll.
This is the biggest breach of privacy Western civilisation has ever seen.
Britain is in big trouble.
Our dear NATO ally.
United in Fascism.
And the USA is standing bodyguard to the neo-marxist cultural and political destruction of Europe
Trump needs to take the British PM to the woodshed on this when they meet.
English users or All accounts?
Another reason to have a degoogled phone
And JD Vance was the bad guy lecturing them last week? About Free speech and peoples rights. Hey u.k. and EUtopia....đź–•
Cowards. And the UK is not the UK anymore. They have always been at war with Eastasia.
*English users.
Now if you even criticize Muslim rape gangs in a private text to your buddy, they can get you.
Right. Bet they don’t see into the migrant crowd.
Me:
What do you know about this:"BREAKING: Apple surrenders to the Labour government and removes highest level data security tool for Apple users"?
Here's Grok's response:
The claim that "Apple surrenders to the Labour government and removes highest level data security tool for Apple users" refers to a recent development reported on February 21, 2025, involving Apple and the UK government under Labour leadership. Here’s what I can confirm based on available information up to today’s date, February 21, 2025: Apple announced it would no longer offer ADP to new UK users and that existing users would eventually need to disable it. The company expressed disappointment, stating, "We are gravely disappointed that the protections provided by ADP will not be available to our customers in the UK given the continuing rise of data breaches and other threats to customer privacy." Apple has historically resisted backdoors, arguing they weaken security for all users and could be exploited by malicious actors, not just governments.The narrative of "surrender" is somewhat sensationalized. Apple didn’t fully capitulate by creating a backdoor; instead, it withdrew the feature entirely from the UK rather than comply with the demand in a way that would compromise its global encryption standards. This aligns with Apple’s past stance—e.g., its refusal to unlock iPhones for the FBI in the 2016 San Bernardino case—where it prioritizes user privacy over government access. However, the removal of ADP does mean UK users lose a layer of protection, making their iCloud data more accessible to Apple and, by extension, to law enforcement with a warrant.
Critics, including cybersecurity experts, have called this a self-inflicted wound by the UK government, arguing it increases vulnerability to cyberattacks without necessarily improving security outcomes. Posts on X and some outlets frame this as a major privacy breach, with phrases like "the government now has access to messages and camera rolls," but this overstates the immediate impact. Messaging services like iMessage and FaceTime remain end-to-end encrypted by default, unaffected by the ADP change. The real shift is in iCloud-stored data, which, without ADP, Apple can now access and share if legally compelled.
The broader context involves ongoing tension between tech companies and governments over encryption. The UK’s move could set a precedent, potentially encouraging other nations to make similar demands. For now, this is less about Apple "surrendering" and more about it choosing to retreat from offering a specific security feature in one market to avoid a larger compromise. The situation is still unfolding, with implications for privacy and security debates worldwide.
“Another reason to have a degoogled phone”
This is Apple, not google.
Wankers.
Thank you for posting that.
The removal of Advanced Data Protection (ADP) for iCloud in the UK doesn’t affect just iPhones—it impacts a variety of Apple products that rely on iCloud for data storage and syncing. ADP, when enabled, provides end-to-end encryption for iCloud data like backups, photos, notes, and files across devices. Without it, the change applies to any Apple device using iCloud in the UK, including:
iPhones and iPads: These are the most commonly affected, as users often back up their data—photos, app data, settings—to iCloud. Without ADP, this data is encrypted, but Apple holds the decryption keys, meaning it can access and share it if required by UK authorities.
- Macs: iCloud Drive, Photos, Notes, and other synced data on macOS devices lose ADP’s extra layer of protection. Files stored in iCloud from a Mac are now accessible to Apple under the same conditions.
- Apple Watches: While the Watch itself doesn’t store much independently, it syncs health data and backups via iCloud through a paired iPhone. That synced data is impacted.
- HomePods: These use iCloud for some settings and data syncing (like Siri preferences), which would also fall under the non-ADP encryption standard.
- Apple TVs: iCloud-stored content like photos or app data synced to an Apple TV would similarly be affected.
The change doesn’t alter the hardware or on-device security of these products—features like Face ID, local encryption, or end-to-end encrypted iMessage/FaceTime remain intact. It specifically targets iCloud data. For example, if you take a photo on your iPhone and it stays only on the device, it’s unaffected. But if it syncs to iCloud Photos without ADP, Apple can technically access it.
The scope is tied to UK-based Apple IDs, so it’s not a global rollback. However, it’s a cross-device issue because iCloud is the unifying ecosystem across Apple’s product lineup. UK users on any Apple device opting into iCloud services will experience this reduction in privacy control, making it a broader ecosystem shift rather than an iPhone-only change.
“You keep using that word.
I do not think it means what you think it means.”
Since they had to cross the Channel to UK, one can call them mojados.
Yur welcome.
I think it's Apple who's in big trouble.
Correct.
Apple just gave away their crown jewels.
I am pretty sure this is misleading but don’t care enough to figure it out.
If anyone wants to see what Cook has to say about it
https://x.com/shellenberger/status/1892972184974274672
Michael Shellenberger
@shellenberger
The UK seems like a free nation. It’s not. It is run by a tyrant, Prime Minister
@Keir_Starmer
. Shame on him for his totalitarian demand. And bravo to Apple CEO
@tim_cook
for defying the government. Please share this to warn the world that UK is no longer safe for free people!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.