UK snooping law won't ban WhatsApp, but could leave your data open to HACKERS

The Investigatory Powers Bill will not ban WhatsApp, but it could leave customers open to criminals

 

THE DRAFT Investigatory Powers Bill could help cybercriminals access your data, technology firm Apple has cautioned the UK Government.

 

Apple has raised concerns about the Investigatory Powers Bill to a parliamentary committee.

The iPhone manufacturer believes the legislation could weaken the security protecting the personal data of "hundreds of millions of law-abiding citizens."

The Investigatory Powers Bill – currently in its draft stage – could overhaul the rules governing how authorities can snoop on people's communications.

Under proposals outlined by Home Secretary Theresa May, communication firms will be legally required to help spies hack into suspects' smartphones and computers.

One of the biggest and most controversial new powers afforded in the bill will force broadband firms to hold basic details of every service and website you have accessed online.

 

Apple CEO Tim Cook has warned the Investigatory Powers Bill would leave Britons vulnerable

 

The Investigatory Powers Bill is a watered down edit of an earlier draft, dubbed Snoopers' Charter

 

"It will provide the strongest safeguards and world-leading oversight arrangements," Theresa May told parliament.

"And it will give the men and women of our security and intelligence agencies and our law enforcement agencies ... the powers they need to protect our country."

But Californian technology firm Apple is believed to have passed on its thoughts to the parliamentary committee scrutinising the legislation.

According to the Financial Times, Apple said demands for the ability to access data held in other countries would "immobilise substantial portions of the tech sector and spark serious international conflicts".

 

The technique allows authorities to interfere with electronic devices in order to obtain data and can range from remotely accessing a computer to covertly downloading the contents of a mobile phone.

It is seen as an increasingly crucial tool as advanced encryption makes intercepting targets' communications more difficult.

There are also fears in technology circles that the proposals will hit services offering "end-to-end encryption" such as WhatsApp and Apple's iMessage.

However the Home Secretary has assured that the legislation "will not ban encryption or do anything to undermine the security of people's data".

But Apple has warned against the proposals.

The US firm – and world's most valuable company – argues that the existence of a backdoor creates a vulnerability that others could exploit, making data stored or sent online less secure.

 



Apple uses end-to-end encryption to secure customers' information



 

"A key left under the doormat would not just be there for the good guys. The bad guys would find it too," the company writes in an eight-page submission to the committee.

In an interview with the Daily Telegraph last month, Apple boss Tim Cook said any attempt to weaken encryption could have "very dire consequences", harming consumers by making their data less secure.

"To protect people who use any products, you have to encrypt. You can just look around and see all the data breaches that are going on.

"These things are becoming more frequent. They can not only result in privacy breaches but also security issues. We believe very strongly in end-to-end encryption and no back doors," he said.

 

Mr Cook warned: "We don't think people want us to read their messages. We don't feel we have the right to read their emails.

"Any back door is a back door for everyone. Everybody wants to crack down on terrorists. Everybody wants to be secure. The question is how. Opening a back door can have very dire consequences."

The proposed new laws could impose obligations on telecommunications providers requiring them to remove "electronic protection" applied to "communications or data".