WASHINGTON—The United Kingdom’s decision to drop demands that Apple allow “back door” access to American customer data was brought about, in large part, through Vice President JD Vance, The Daily Wire has learned.
The vice president led the United States’s efforts to negotiate a deal with the British government as the United States pushes the United Kingdom to drop their backdoor access to Apple user data, an American official shared with The Daily Wire. Vance was personally involved in negotiating the deal and had direct conversations with the British government.
That deal is a mutually beneficial understanding that the British government will withdraw its current backdoor order to Apple, the official shared, and the agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom maintains each country’s sovereignty while also ensuring close cooperation on data sharing.
“The VP took a strong interest in this issue because of his background in technology, his concern for privacy, and his since commitment to maintain a strong U.S.-U.K. relationship,” the official shared.
The Daily Wire broke the news in February that the American intelligence community was investigating the potential implications of Apple sharing users’ iCloud data to “facilitate U.K. government access to any Apple iCloud users’ uploaded data anywhere in the world,” Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said at the time.
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“I share your grave concern about the serious implications of the United Kingdom, or any foreign country, requiring Apple or any company to create a ‘backdoor’ that would allow access to Americans’ personal encrypted data,” Gabbard wrote to Senator Ron Wyden(D-WA) and Congressman Andy Biggs(R-AZ) at the time. “This would be a clear and egregious violation of Americans’ privacy and civil liberties, and open up a serious vulnerability for cyber exploitation by adversarial actors.”
While Gabbard said that American intelligence relationships with foreign partners are of “vital importance to our national security,” she also emphasized that her obligations as Director of National Intelligence “include protecting both the security of our country and the God-given rights of the American people enshrined in the U.S. Constitution.”
“I look forward to working with my foreign counterparts to achieve both,” she said. “I remain committed to keeping Congress currently and fully informed of developments on this and other intelligence-related matters.”
On Monday, Gabbard shared that the United Kingdom had agreed to drop its mandate for Apple to provide the back door.
“Over the past few months, I’ve been working closely with our partners in the UK, alongside @POTUS and @VP, to ensure Americans’ private data remains private and our Constitutional rights and civil liberties are protected,” Gabbard said in a post on social media. “As a result, the UK has 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.”
Apple did not respond to a request for comment from The Daily Wire.