Apple warns about UK surveillance powers bill

The tech giant Apple has warned that a plan set forth by the UK government to give intelligence agencies extra online surveillance powers could weaken the security of personal data for millions of people and paralyze the tech sector.

The proposals for new online powers were unveiled last month by the government as part of measures "needed to keep the country safe from criminals, fraudsters and militants, including the right to find out which websites people visit."

The plan has sparked harsh criticism from many observers saying the Investigatory Powers Bill gives British spies authority beyond those available in other Western countries.

"We believe it is wrong to weaken security for hundreds of millions of law-abiding customers so that it will also be weaker for the very few who pose a threat," the company  said.

Apple gave its response to a British parliamentary committee which is in charge of considering the new bill. This is the latest clash between Western governments seeking to monitor the threat from extremist groups and online companies working to maintain security.

The company also said the draft laws could weaken data encryption, sanction interference with its products, force non-UK companies to break the laws of their home countries, and spark similar legislation in other countries that could paralyze firms under the weight of dozens of contradictory laws.

Another tech giant, Microsoft has also said an international approach would keep people more secure than competing measures from different countries.

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