Apple to require court order before supplying user data to law enforcement

In a new policy update, Apple said it will no longer hand over its users' push notification data to law enforcement without a court order.

The new policy aims to limit the facilitation of government surveillance and the update is reflected in Apple's Government and Law Enforcement guidelines, Reuters reports.

The decision follows concerns brought up by Oregon Senator Ron Wyden (D) who recently acknowledged that officials had been requesting push notification data from Apple and Google. Google's policy already requires a court order, according to the outlet.

Wyden explained that push notifications travel over Apple and Google servers which puts the two companies "in a unique position to facilitate government surveillance of how users are using particular apps." The notifications give Apple and Google insight into the flow of traffic from apps to users.