A group of bipartisan US lawmakers are urging the head of the UK surveillance court to hold a public hearing on Apple’s anticipated challenge of suspected legal demand for the UK government.
US Sen. Ron Wyden, along with four other federal lawmakers, wrote this week to the president of the UK Tribunal of Inquiry (IPT), which stated that it was in the public interest that hearings on the suspicious order were not kept secret.
The MP also said the alleged British orders bar California-based Apple from engaging in speeches that are “constitutionally protected” under US law, hindering lawmakers’ ability to oversee Congress.
The Washington Post revealed in February that the UK government secretly ordered Apple to create a “backdoor” earlier this year. Apple, which is legally prohibited from disclosing or commenting on the so-called “technical competency notification,” reportedly rejects and withdraws advanced data protection from UK customers, rather than complying with backdoor orders.
The UK Court of Investigation, which hears legal cases relating to the use of UK surveillance powers, will hear private petitions on Friday, in accordance with the court’s public schedule. The hearing reportedly is related to Apple, according to Wyden’s letter.
Apple did not comment when TechCrunch reached on Friday.
So far, the UK government has refused to comment on operational issues, including confirming or denying the existence of such notices, according to a spokesman.
The number of companies that received technical demand from the UK government is unclear.
According to a letter from the lawmaker, Google said “recently, Senator Wyden’s office is prohibited from revealing the facts if it receives a technical competency notification.”
Two civil rights groups, Liberty and Privacy International, are also challenging the UK government’s backdoor order through legal submissions to the IPT. The pair also took part in a similar call from the Privacy Rights Group earlier this week, seeking a watchdog hearing against Apple’s appeal held in public.
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