Congress passed the Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data — or CLOUD — Act in 2018 to allow U.S. law enforcement officials to obtain data from American companies stored on their overseas servers. The law directs U.S. firms to adhere to warrants for data, even if that data is stored on foreign soil, and also authorizes the creation of bilateral data-sharing agreements between the U.S. and allies. The CLOUD Act data access agreement between the U.S. and UK went into effect in October 2022.
The Washington Post reported in February, however, that the UK issued a secret order to Apple requesting that the tech giant provide its law enforcement and intelligence personnel with the “blanket capability” to access customers’ encrypted files worldwide, meaning Apple customers residing in the U.S. would be cast into that dragnet.
Under the UK’s 2016 Investigatory Powers Act — known colloquially as the Snooper’s Charter — Apple received the order to provide cloud data without any judicial review.
During a House Judiciary Crime and Federal Government Surveillance Subcommittee hearing on Thursday, lawmakers expressed bipartisan support for strengthening cybersecurity and privacy provisions in CLOUD Act agreements so that Americans’ data remains secure.
Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., who chairs the panel, said the UK’s order “sets a dangerous precedent.”
“Efforts to weaken or even break encryption makes us all less s ..
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