As a believer in equal protection under the law, it is never a win when a powerful company or government lobbies for a specific carve out for only it's customers or its country. Human rights like privacy don't belong to those who bought the right phone or were born on the right piece of soil.
This isn't a win, this is solidifying and reinforcing the idea that different laws should exist for different classes of people - those who can afford to make the government look the other way and those that can't.
Congratulations to Apple on lobbying for its own money. Very noble.
throwfaraway4 · 42m ago
>it is never a win when a powerful company or government lobbies for a specific carve out for only it's customers or its country.
This wasn't an "Apple only" law -- it would have affected all platforms with data on customers that live outside the UK.
>This isn't a win, this is solidifying and reinforcing the idea that different laws should exist for different classes of people - those who can afford to make the government look the other way and those that can't.
Corporations are not people. The people can afford to vote out politicians making laws that go against the will of the people.
chrismustcode · 55m ago
I agree it should be across the spectrum where people have the same rights to privacy.
> those who can afford to make the government look the other way and those that can't.
> Congratulations to Apple on lobbying for its own money. Very noble.
But what’s your implication here, that Apple shouldn’t have fought it?
consp · 46m ago
Probably that it should be a generalization and apple should have fought for that and not apply just to one particular operator.
hermannj314 · 46m ago
As far as I know, the blue/green mentality is a cultural issue for Apple. They would be fine if Android users had their data read by the government, because that injustice is a market differentiator for them they can then sell.
I'm not saying they shouldn't lobby for what they believe in, but Apple always stops short of making the world a better place and seems to care only if their walled garden is secure.
arccy · 41m ago
s/secure/profitable/
lenerdenator · 7m ago
Any port in a storm.
throw0101a · 8m ago
> Congratulations to Apple on lobbying for its own money. Very noble.
First they came for the Apple fanboys, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Apple fanboy.
If the UK had 'won' again Apple, do you not think that the Android ecosystem would be next? If the UK had 'won', do you not think that Turkey, India, China, etc, would not be lining up as well?
catigula · 27m ago
Unfortunately the internet is just going to be these ChatGPT comments now, isn't it.
hermannj314 · 14m ago
I am a human being, but I have been training on ChatGPT conversations for a few years, is it starting to show?
ben_w · 11m ago
FWIW, I was using em-dash before it was actively the opposite of cool.
accrual · 7m ago
Do we really think an account that's been here since 2009 and claims to be a software developer is using ChatGPT to write comments on Hacker News?
DaiPlusPlus · 19m ago
I checked; their post has good ol' fashioned hyphens, no em-dashes, so it's less likely to be slop.
flumpcakes · 1h ago
Good news for UK people.
I am all for laws designed to protect children, and stop terrorism. But these 'back door' laws are nearly always very poorly thought out and offers new avenues for 'normal' people to come to harm.
throw0101a · 6m ago
> I am all for laws designed to protect children, and stop terrorism.
Meanwhile, who believes that the US has no backdoors in these devices?
philistine · 38m ago
Cold logic dictates otherwise. The UK is part of Five Eyes: total data sharing between intelligence agencies. If that were the case, why would the UK need a law to get data it already has?
Someone · 53s ago
[delayed]
kneegerm · 18m ago
San Bernardino shootings smartypants
sedivy94 · 53m ago
Why litigate it when you can buy it from the NSO / IDF?
johnisgood · 1h ago
Hopefully no one, in services available globally (i.e. not US-specific), just to be sure.
ACCount37 · 51m ago
I am very much against laws designed to protect children and stop terrorism.
By now, "think of the children" is a tired cliche of anti-freedom laws. If "protecting children" requires sacrificing freedom for everyone, then children should not be protected.
Every time I come across another anti-freedom law wrapped in an excuse of "think of the children", I question whether the worshippers of Moloch had the right idea after all.
chaostheory · 1h ago
Back doors just make the device or platform less secure.
Retr0id · 2h ago
It's great that they're dropping it, but concerning that it was only because of pushback from US politicians.
Also important to note:
> With the order now reportedly removed, it’s unclear if Apple will restore access to its ADP service in the UK.
ExoticPearTree · 2h ago
For sure they didn't drop it out of the goodness of their heart.
Retr0id · 1h ago
There was once an idea that elected politicians should champion the interests of their constituents.
201984 · 51m ago
Somehow I don't think this was in the constituents' interests in the first place.
stronglikedan · 1h ago
> only because of pushback from US politicians
Like it or hate it, that's still the way of the world.
stephen_g · 1h ago
The other concerning thing is that it took the otherwise awful Trump administration to push back, while the Biden administration was reportedly going to look the other way (and have been accused of knowing about it but hiding it from Congress) [1].
See this is the kind of lying I expect from politicians - misleading people about their policy decisions. Not the constant challenging of recorded fact.
hardlianotion · 1h ago
Just rejoice that in this one case, the spinelessness of our elected representatives has some, perhaps temporary, upside.
terminalshort · 1h ago
How is this an example of spinelessness?
logicchains · 1h ago
Maybe they mean the spinelessness of UK representatives?
abullinan · 1h ago
Some people always assume everything is about their country.
hardlianotion · 14m ago
Yep
varispeed · 1h ago
The backdoors might still go ahead. What if backing down is just for show?
In the end they don't have to let public know, but this information serves a purpose - potential suspects might now think it is okay to use now and fall right into the trap.
amelius · 1h ago
Yes, the US should be the only one with backdoors /s
tehwebguy · 56m ago
Title should say "reportedly drops" or "according to US official." No proof is offered other than a tweet from Tulsi Gabbard.
This isn't a win, this is solidifying and reinforcing the idea that different laws should exist for different classes of people - those who can afford to make the government look the other way and those that can't.
Congratulations to Apple on lobbying for its own money. Very noble.
This wasn't an "Apple only" law -- it would have affected all platforms with data on customers that live outside the UK.
>This isn't a win, this is solidifying and reinforcing the idea that different laws should exist for different classes of people - those who can afford to make the government look the other way and those that can't.
Corporations are not people. The people can afford to vote out politicians making laws that go against the will of the people.
> those who can afford to make the government look the other way and those that can't.
> Congratulations to Apple on lobbying for its own money. Very noble.
But what’s your implication here, that Apple shouldn’t have fought it?
I'm not saying they shouldn't lobby for what they believe in, but Apple always stops short of making the world a better place and seems to care only if their walled garden is secure.
First they came for the Apple fanboys, and I did not speak out— Because I was not a Apple fanboy.
* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_They_Came
If the UK had 'won' again Apple, do you not think that the Android ecosystem would be next? If the UK had 'won', do you not think that Turkey, India, China, etc, would not be lining up as well?
I am all for laws designed to protect children, and stop terrorism. But these 'back door' laws are nearly always very poorly thought out and offers new avenues for 'normal' people to come to harm.
The usual suspects:
* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Horsemen_of_the_Infocalyp...
By now, "think of the children" is a tired cliche of anti-freedom laws. If "protecting children" requires sacrificing freedom for everyone, then children should not be protected.
Every time I come across another anti-freedom law wrapped in an excuse of "think of the children", I question whether the worshippers of Moloch had the right idea after all.
Also important to note:
> With the order now reportedly removed, it’s unclear if Apple will restore access to its ADP service in the UK.
Like it or hate it, that's still the way of the world.
1. https://daringfireball.net/linked/2025/02/26/wapo-biden-just...
Bet that's not happening...