Cybersecurity Policy Report, Apple Should Be Allowed to Discuss U.K.’s Encryption Demand With Congress, Lawmakers Say, (Sep 11, 2026)

By Tom Leithauser

Apple, Inc., shouldn’t be barred by the government of the United Kingdom from briefing members of Congress on the U.K.’s demand that Apple enable the U.K. government to access encrypted communications of Apple’s customers, according to Sen. Ron Wyden (D., Ore.) and Rep. Warren Davidson (R., Ohio).

In a letter sent today to the U.K.’s Investigatory Powers Tribunal, Sen. Wyden and Rep. Davidson asked the tribunal to lift a gag order that prevents Apple from discussing its legal challenge to the U.K. government’s demand for access to encrypted communications.

Last year, the U.K. government dropped an earlier request for access to Apple’s encrypted data after U.S. officials objected (CPR, Aug. 19, 2025). But the U.K. government reportedly renewed its request with modifications that would limit its access to Apple’s U.K. customers (CPR, Oct. 2, 2025). Authorities in the U.K. and elsewhere view end-to-end encryption as a roadblock to investigating crime and national security threats.

“Apple recently informed Congress that it is challenging the U.K. government’s authority to issue surveillance directives,” Sen. Wyden and Rep. Davidson noted in their letter to the tribunal.

“Apple sought permission from the U.K. government to discuss this issue in more detail with both the executive and legislative branches of the U.S. government. Apple further informed Congress that the U.K. government granted Apple permission to brief the Attorney General, the Vice President, and their staff, while explicitly prohibiting the company from discussing the issue in further detail with the U.S. Congress,” the lawmakers said.

“It is wholly inappropriate for a foreign executive body to attempt to dictate the distribution of powers within the U.S. government, nor should it be permitted to use secrecy directives under the Investigatory Powers Act to frustrate Article I powers under the U.S. Constitution. Under our system, Congress is not only a co-equal branch of government, it is the First Branch of the U.S. government,” they said.

“Weakening encryption in consumer software introduces critical vulnerabilities that can be exploited by hostile foreign actors. Congress cannot fulfill its constitutional duty to evaluate and mitigate these national security threats if foreign non-disclosure orders are weaponized to prevent U.S. technology companies from answering inquiries from duly elected lawmakers,” they told the tribunal.

“The U.K. government’s unprecedented demands for secrecy in this matter undermine democratic governance in both the United States and the U.K., and needlessly strain the relationship between our two nations,” the lawmakers said.

“We also reiterate our call from last year requesting that the Tribunal facilitate open justice in these proceedings and allow independent cybersecurity experts and affected stakeholders to evaluate the technical demands in question,” they added. “Furthermore, the Tribunal should ensure that no surveillance demand issued under U.K. law is permitted to restrict U.S. companies from fully informing and engaging with the United States Congress.”

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