Apple Will Remove The Advanced Data Protection Feature In The UK

JAKARTA - Apple will soon remove the Advanced Data Protection (ADP) feature in the UK. This feature allows iPhone users to add end-to-end encryption to iCloud data.

"Apple can no longer offer Advanced Data Protection (ADP) in the United Kingdom to new users," reads a notification appearing on UK users' iPhone, iPad, or Mac devices.

The decision comes amid a dispute between Apple and Britain, where governments in the country require Apple to build backdoors, so their security officials can access user-owned encrypted data around the world.

According to the tech giant, ADP serves to protect iCloud data with thorough encryption, meaning the data can only be decrypted by users who have it.

"We are very disappointed that the protection provided by ADP will not be available to our customers in the UK given the continued increase in data breaches and other threats to customer privacy," an Apple spokesperson told Engadget.

Thus, users must manually disable encryption. Due to end-to-end encryption, Apple cannot disable ADP automatically on its username.

Apple also said it would give users a deadline before ADP finally disappeared, although there is no certainty how long it will take. The company will share additional guidelines in the future.

"Apple remains committed to offering our users the highest level of security for their personal data and hopes we can do so in the future in the United Kingdom," Apple added.

Apple also emphasized that it will never create a backdoor for anyone who wants access to all user data.