On Thursday 404 Media reported that police were freaking out about mysteriously rebooting iPhones. Now multiple experts have found that Apple introduced code that reboots locked phones after a period of time.

Apple quietly introduced code into iOS 18.1 which reboots the device if it has not been unlocked for a period of time, reverting it to a state which improves the security of iPhones overall and is making it harder for police to break into the devices, according to multiple iPhone security experts.

On Thursday, 404 Media reported that law enforcement officials were freaking out that iPhones which had been stored for examination were mysteriously rebooting themselves. At the time the cause was unclear, with the officials only able to speculate why they were being locked out of the devices. Now a day later, the potential reason why is coming into view.

“Apple indeed added a feature called ‘inactivity reboot’ in iOS 18.1.,” Dr.-Ing. Jiska Classen, a research group leader at the Hasso Plattner Institute, tweeted after 404 Media published on Thursday along with screenshots that they presented as the relevant pieces of code.

  • NιƙƙιDιɱҽʂEnglish
    16•1 month ago

    Seized or not, they can not force you to unlock your phone via pin without a warrant. They can only force you to use biometrics.

    • @NotMyOldRedditNameEnglish
      4•1 month ago

      Right, but this is about them bypassing you entirely.

      They don’t need your fingerprint or pass code if they can bypass it themselves. This feature protects you when they’ve seized it lawfully which can be for many reasons.

      • @[email protected]English
        9•1 month ago

        Or even if they’ve seized it unlawfully. Or if it’s been stolen by a regular thief, a cybercriminal, the mafia, or a cartel.

        • @NotMyOldRedditNameEnglish
          0•1 month ago

          I’m not sure how much it would actually help for a regular thief.

          This is about protecting it against more sophisticated attacks. But the rest probably have those means if wanted.

      • umami_wasabiEnglish
        7•1 month ago

        It is their job to find evidences, not my resposibility to provide them.

        • @NotMyOldRedditNameEnglish
          1•1 month ago

          I’ve never said otherwise.

          It’s their job to find a way to hack into the phone.

          This feature makes that even harder.

    • @just_another_personEnglish
      3•1 month ago

      Other people answered, but to your point, in some cases THEY CAN compel without a court order.

      Biometrics don’t conform to certain laws, and it gets even more complicated if you’re entering the US through customs. They can practically hold you indefinitely if you don’t comply. Whether you have legal representation is sort of an after thought.