Court hearing reported to be Apple's appeal against UK order held in secret

A London court hearing, reported to be Apple’s appeal against a British government, was held in secret on Friday.

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A London court hearing, reported to be Apple's appeal against a British government order to create a "back door" to its encrypted cloud storage systems, was held in secret on Friday, with media not allowed to attend despite a formal request.

In February, The Washington Post reported that Britain had issued a "technical capability notice" to the tech firm to enable access to encrypted messages and photos, even for users outside the country.

The iPhone maker in response removed its most advanced security encryption for cloud data, called Advanced Data Protection, for new users in Britain.

Details of the case have been shrouded in secrecy, and neither Apple nor the British government has publicly confirmed the technical capability notice.

The BBC reported a hearing on Friday simply listed as "an application in private" at the Investigatory Powers Tribunal, a court that considers allegations of unlawful intrusion by public bodies, was Apple's appeal against this order.

There was no confirmation of what parties were involved, although James Eadie, who represents the government in its most serious legal cases, attended. He declined to comment. Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.