The United Kingdom is considering measures to force Apple to provide access to certain iCloud data, raising concerns for crypto users who store their wallets on iPhones and Macs. If device backups and general file storage lose end-to-end protection in the UK, seed phrases and private key material can be more easily accessed by authorities or individuals with the necessary technical expertise.
Implications for Crypto Users
The British authorities have demonstrated a new technical capability to access Apple accounts, although Apple has not commented on this development. In February, Apple withdrew extended data protection for UK users, which had provided end-to-end encryption for categories such as device backups, iCloud Drive, photos, and notes. By default, iCloud Keychain remains encrypted end-to-end, and Apple has never built a backdoor into its products.
This distinction is important because crypto assets often reside outside of the iCloud Keychain. Users may store screenshots of seed phrases in their photos or write recovery words in notes, leaving them vulnerable to access if advanced data protection is not available. Historical cases have shown that users can suffer significant losses when their iCloud backups are compromised, including incidents related to MetaMask.
Technical Details and Risks
Apple’s documentation explains how backup protection works in the iCloud backup security overview and describes Keychain protection in the Keychain overview. The broader Advanced Data Protection page outlines which categories receive end-to-end encryption when the feature is available. The Online Safety Law codes of practice authorize OFCOM to propose and accredit technology measures, including client-side scanning approaches, and to monitor compliance with services.
A simple way to estimate the exposure is to consider the UK pool of iPhone users whose content is based on Apple’s hero key. Using the National Statistics Office’s mid-2024 population estimate of around 69.3 million, a smartphone penetration rate of 90-95% from DataReportal and OFCOM, and an iOS share of 45-55%, the pool of users who may be affected is in the millions.
These users are not all at risk of losing their wallets, but the pool frames the size of the risk when Apple keys and a UK access route coexist. A stress test can help anchor the discussion: if 1-3 basis points of this pool are affected over a year by a mix of lawful abuse, social engineering, or targeted account recovery attacks, the potential losses could be significant, ranging from $3 million to $80 million.
Developer and User Mitigations
Developers can reduce exposure by ensuring that seed material is not stored in cloud-synchronized storage, using safe enclaves for key protection, and requiring high-cost-playing key settings for optional cloud protection functions. Users can also take steps to protect themselves, such as moving seed storage off-device and out of the cloud, avoiding screenshots and notes for recovery words, and hardening Apple ID and two-factor authentication restoration.
According to Coinbase Wallet Guidance, the cloud fuse is rejected and encrypted with a user-selected password, which means that users are responsible for password quality if they choose to use the function. The broader market context explains why a change in UK guidelines resonates beyond the UK: targeted orders can have scope over time, and engineering that leads to encryption in one place increases pressure to replicate the result elsewhere.
Conclusion and Next Steps
The short-term facts are clear: the UK has renewed a secret order to access iCloud data for UK users, and Apple withdrew advanced data protection for new UK users in February. The categories of data that are still encrypted are detailed in Apple’s documentation. OFCOM is refining how the online safety law is enforced and how proactive technology measures are accredited and applied.
These facts are sufficient to build clear threat models and quantify exposure areas. What happens next depends on whether the UK prescribes methods that compromise encryption or restores end-to-end protection for backups, photos, notes, and other high-value data. For more information, visit https://cryptoslate.com/will-apple-allow-government-access-to-bitcoin-private-key-backups-via-80m-icloud-backdoor/
