Gabbard says UK scraps demand for Apple to give backdoor access to data
Gabbard indicated London and Washington had resolved their high-stakes dispute over electronic privacy, writing on X that she and President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance spent the 'past few months' working with the U.K. government.
'As a result, the UK agreed to drop its mandate for Apple to provide a 'back door' that would have enabled access to the protected encrypted data of American citizens and encroached on our civil liberties,' she said.
The dispute surfaced at the start of the year with a news report that British security officials had issued the U.S. tech giant with a secret order requiring the creation of backdoor access to view fully encrypted material.
Apple challenged the order, which raised fears of electronic spying by national security officials.
The British government reportedly served Apple with what is known as a 'technical capability notice' ordering it to provide the access under a sweeping law called the Investigatory Powers Act of 2016, which has been dubbed the snoopers' charter.
The U.K. Home Office did not respond directly to Gabbard's statement, saying it 'does not comment on operational matters, including confirming or denying the existence of such notices.'
'We have long had joint security and intelligence arrangements with the US to tackle the most serious threats such as terrorism and child sexual abuse, including the role played by fast-moving technology in enabling those threats," the office said. "We will always take all actions necessary at the domestic level to keep UK citizens safe.'
Gabbard previously said a demand for backdoor access would violate the rights of Americans and raise concerns about a foreign government pressuring a U.S.-based technology company.
Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The company had reacted to the order by withdrawing its Advanced Data Protection encryption feature for new users in the U.K. and disabling it for existing users.
The opt-in feature protects iCloud files, photos, notes and other data with end-to-end encryption when they are stored in the cloud.
___
Associated Press writer Sylvia Hui contributed to this report.
Solve the daily Crossword
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Boston Globe
25 minutes ago
- Boston Globe
The convictions that count are the ones that sometimes sting
I bring up Goldberg's essay not only to recommend it but also because I was struck by the question with which he introduced it: 'What principle do you hold,' he challenged his readers, 'that is against your self-interest or political desires?' Get The Gavel A weekly SCOTUS explainer newsletter by columnist Kimberly Atkins Stohr. Enter Email Sign Up It's a cogent and revealing test. It obliges anyone who answers the question to think about whether they embrace their convictions as a matter of principle or merely because they're convenient. Anyone can defend the freedoms or prohibitions that serve their own purposes. The truer test of ideological and moral seriousness is whether you adhere to your principles even when doing so cuts against your interests, tastes, or partisan loyalties. Advertisement This isn't an ivory-tower abstraction. American history is rich with examples of people who upheld principle at real personal cost. John Adams, though a patriot who hated British rule, risked his career to defend the redcoats accused in the Boston Massacre, convinced that even despised defendants deserved counsel and a fair trial. Justice John Marshall Harlan, raised in a Kentucky family of enslavers, broke with his social milieu to insist in his lone dissent in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) that 'our Constitution is color-blind.' And in 1960, Richard Nixon, urged by allies to contest an election marred by serious irregularities, refused to plunge the nation into turmoil, saying the country's stability mattered more than his own ambition. I have tried to meet that test in my own writing — with what success, I leave others to judge. For instance, I defend the right even of Holocaust-deniers to spread Advertisement I have sometimes put a version of Goldberg's question to candidates in a primary election: Can you name a position you take that is clearly opposed by most of your party's base? Rarely have I gotten a substantive answer. Most politicians duck the question, unwilling to announce that they uphold an unpopular position on principle — even though doing so would be pretty strong evidence that their convictions were genuine. What makes this problem worse is the increasingly common belief that only those who agree with us are legitimate participants in American life. Too many on the right write off their opponents as anti-American, while too many on the left see theirs as irredeemably bigoted or authoritarian. If you begin from the premise that dissenters are not merely wrong but illegitimate, then there is no reason to extend to them the rights or freedoms you claim for yourself. But that mind-set drains principle of all meaning. Defending free speech only for your allies is like championing religious liberty only for your own faith: That's not upholding a principle — it's wielding a partisan cudgel, something that has become endemic in contemporary American life. So much of what bedevils our civic discourse these days, Goldberg writes, begins with 'the premise that America is defined by our politics and, therefore, the people with the wrong politics are not Americans.' Which is why Goldberg's challenge ought to be posed more often. A principle that only applies when it's easy isn't much of a principle at all. So, readers, I'll put the same question to you: What principle do you hold that runs against your own interest or desire? Please give it some thought and share your reflections. In a future column, I'll share some of the more intriguing and noteworthy responses. Advertisement Jeff Jacoby can be reached at
UPI
26 minutes ago
- UPI
On This Day, Aug. 20: Augusta National Golf Club admits women for 1st time
1 of 7 | Former Secretary of State and Augusta National Member Condoleezza Rice watches the Drive, Chip and Putt National Championship at Augusta National in Georgia on April 4, 2021. On August 20, 2012, Rice and businesswoman Darla Moore became the first female members of the club. File Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo Aug. 20 (UPI) -- On this date in history: In 1741, Danish navigator Vitus Jonas Bering became the first European to reach what is now called Alaska. In 1858, theories by Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace regarding evolution were published in a British scholarly journal. In 1968, about 200,000 Warsaw Pact troops and 5,000 tanks invaded Czechoslovakia to crush the "Prague Spring" -- a brief period of efforts to democratize socialism in the country. In 1977, the second U.S. Voyager spacecraft -- one of two launched in 1977 -- left Cape Canaveral, Fla., bound for Jupiter and Saturn. The two Voyager space probes are still transmitting data. In 1986, postal worker Patrick Henry Sherrill killed 14 fellow workers and wounded six others in the Edmond, Okla., post office before killing himself. File Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI In 1989, 18-year-old Eric Menendez and 21-year-old Lyle Menendez -- the Menendez brothers -- killed their parents with a gun. The brothers were arrested in March and in 1996, both were convicted and sentenced to life in prison. In 1996, U.S. President Bill Clinton signed into law an increase in the minimum wage in two steps from $4.25 to $5.15 an hour. In 1998, U.S. missiles struck sites in Afghanistan and Sudan said to be linked with terrorists. The attacks were in response to the bombings of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania 13 days earlier. In 2003, Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore was suspended after refusing to comply with a federal court order to remove a rock inscribed with the Ten Commandments from the lobby of the state Supreme Court building. File Photo by Morris Abernathy/UPI In 2008, a Spanair jetliner crashed on takeoff in Madrid, killing 154 people and injuring many others. Observers said the left jet engine was on fire as the plane took off. In 2009, the Libyan convicted of the 1968 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, which exploded over Scotland killing 270 people, was freed from prison on compassionate grounds. Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi, who had been sentenced to life in prison in 2001, had prostate cancer. He died in May 2012. In 2011, two U.S. hikers who said they had wandered into Iran by mistake were sentenced to eight years in an Iranian prison for espionage. They were freed one month later and returned to the United States. In 2012, former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and businesswoman Darla Moore became the first female members of Georgia's Augusta National Golf Club, site of the Masters, one of golf's most prestigious events. The club had long been under attack by women's rights groups, and others, for its all-male membership. In 2014, mudslides caused by heavy rains killed about 70 people in residential areas on the outskirts of Hiroshima, Japan. In 2020, former senior adviser to President Donald Trump, Steve Bannon, was arrested and charged for allegedly bilking political donors out of hundreds of thousands of dollars. He was later pardoned by Trump and the charges were dismissed. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI
Business Insider
26 minutes ago
- Business Insider
What the 'hidden job market' really is and how to make it work for you
Sometimes, the best way to land a job at a company is to get rejected by them first. In the months before graduating from Cornell University in 2023, Jahnavi Shah said she applied to over 500 jobs and secured five interviews, but none led to a full-time offer — at least not right away. Several months later, she'd be fast-tracked into a role thanks to a contact she'd made during that stretch. All it took was a good initial application, a LinkedIn connection — and a little patience. "It's a great reminder that even if an opportunity doesn't work out immediately, staying on the radar can make a difference," said the 24-year-old, who lives in San Francisco. Here's what happened: Disappointed to not land a role she'd interviewed for at identity verification startup Persona, Shah connected with the recruiter on LinkedIn anyway. Months later, she'd accepted a part-time contract role but was still looking for full-time employment. When she received a congratulatory message from the Persona recruiter, Shah checked Persona's careers page, where she saw a new job posted just a few days earlier. She applied, landed an interview, and received an offer after sharing three references. Shah said she was told only one interview was required because the company was already familiar with her. "I believe my previous interview experience gave the team a solid understanding of my profile and potential," she said. Shah is among the workers who have battled a challenging job market in recent years. Amid economic uncertainty, ranging from tariffs to the early impacts of AI adoption, US businesses are hiring at nearly the slowest pace in more than a decade. Open roles are taking longer to fill — if they're filled at all — and some job seekers say they're sending out dozens of applications without ever hearing back from employers. In this environment, it can feel like hiring happens behind closed doors — like there's a membership to an exclusive club that some job seekers simply don't have access to. In some cases, a club of this sort does exist, but getting in is more accessible than it seems. Landing an interview, even if you're rejected, can sometimes be enough to secure future opportunities. Business Insider has heard from hundreds of Americans over the past year who are struggling to find work as US businesses slow hiring and flatten management structures. Share your story by filling out this quick form and read more below: A laid-off Accenture manager has been job hunting for 21 months. Recruiters keep telling him he's too expensive. I'm a 53-year-old middle manager who can't find a job. I burned through my savings and even resorted to selling plasma — this market is a black hole. From six figures to $25 an hour: These struggling job seekers are settling for lower-paying jobs to pay the bills Job searching in 2025? It's a mess no matter how old you are. Getting into the 'hidden job market' can give candidates an edge Bonnie Dilber, senior manager of talent acquisition at the automation software company Zapier, said she believes the vast majority of roles are publicly posted on platforms like LinkedIn and Indeed — with some exceptions, such as senior executive positions, jobs at stealth startups, and roles at small mom-and-pop businesses. However, she said some companies do regularly hire through what she calls the "hidden job market" — prioritizing a select pool of candidates and, in some cases, skipping a public job posting altogether. Often, though, that pool isn't full of people with insider connections, but of prior applicants who stayed on the company's radar, she said. Over her career, Dilber said she's hired "countless" people who impressed during interviews but were initially rejected due to factors like timing or location. When circumstances changed, the company reached back out and fast-tracked them for other openings. At her company, for example, she said they might post a role like technical support specialist or account executive — positions typically filled in high volumes — and hire a handful of candidates. A couple of months later, when new openings arise, they might revisit the same applicant pool rather than reposting the job. If a strong runner-up had made it to the final round, they might extend an offer without even conducting another interview. "Someone could look at that and think 'no job was posted but someone got hired,' but in reality, those are applicants from existing candidate pools that a company makes many hires from," she said. Other employers are also finding ways to give rejected candidates a second shot. Sean Barry, Allstate's vice president of talent acquisition, said the company implemented a system last year that flags qualified candidates who were initially turned down and recommends them for other roles. So far, it's helped Allstate hire more than 100 people, many of them for claims positions. "While they might've been a no-go for that role at that time, it certainly doesn't mean that they're not a fit for the company and potentially a fit for another need," Barry previously told Business Insider. Dilber said she's benefited from processes like this herself. On two occasions, she applied for a role and was the runner-up — only to be contacted shortly after about a different opportunity, with a shorter interview process since the company was already familiar with her. She said her top advice for job seekers is to focus on submitting applications for roles they're well qualified for — and to use networking and referrals to strengthen those efforts whenever possible. Even if it doesn't lead to an offer right away, a strong application — especially one that leads to an interview — can open doors down the line. "Your best bet is always to apply with a strong application — and a referral if possible — rather than worrying about jobs that were never posted," she said. When a rejected job application turns into a dream job offer Sometimes, getting rejected doesn't lead to a job at that employer — but it can open doors elsewhere. In 2024, Alicia Strata applied for an administrative assistant job but didn't get the position. However, the third-party recruiter the company worked with suggested a part-time office support role at another company that he thought might be a good fit — so she decided to give it a shot, even though she wasn't particularly interested in the position. During the interview, Strata said she kept getting asked marketing questions that didn't align with the job description. Halfway through, she learned there had been a mix-up: the company was actually looking to hire a marketing professional. It was exactly the kind of role she'd been hoping to find since graduating with a degree in marketing communications. The interviewers thought she seemed like a great fit, and she started working at the company a month later. "It was amazing to walk into the interview not even wanting the role, and walk out thinking it could be my dream career," she said. Landing jobs through connections made during interviews isn't a new phenomenon. After graduating in December 2007 with a degree in communication arts, Allyson Noonan struggled to land a job, so she worked part-time at Anthropologie and babysat. One day, someone who interviewed her for a job she didn't get contacted her, saying she had a friend in the industry looking for an entry-level position that she thought she'd be a fit for. This position turned out to be her first full-time job at a PR agency, which she started in June 2008. "This experience taught me that it's wise to take every interview you can — even if you're not sure it's a good fit," she said.
