Apple is working on a new security feature that can automatically lock the iPhone when it detects that it has been stolen from the user. Here are the details.
Apple is going after iPhone thieves
Most of us know that feeling: one second you’re looking at your iPhone, the next you’re staring at an empty hand. By the time you figure out what happened, whoever took the device is no longer available.
Over the years, Apple has greatly improved iPhone anti-theft protection with features like Find me, Activation Lockand Stolen Device Protection.
However, many of these protections can be rendered virtually useless if the thief still manages to get the device unlocked.
Apple included time-based security delays to prevent major Apple ID changes, but the reality is that once a thief gets their hands on an unlocked iPhone, they can still do significant damage.
That’s why Apple is working on a new feature that, like Android, automatically locks the iPhone when it detects that it’s been taken out of the user’s hands. Anti-theft lock.
These systems will use several signals, including the iPhone’s accelerometer, to determine when the device has been taken away from the user. After the capture is confirmed, the iPhone will be locked automatically.
The feature will also track the distance to the paired Apple Watch to more accurately determine whether the iPhone has been picked up or not.
Additionally, once fully implemented and up and running, the feature will take into account the same rules that apply to Stolen Device Protection: whether the iPhone is connected to a familiar WiFi network and whether it’s in a familiar location, such as home or work.
In addition to automatically locking the device if these conditions indicate that the iPhone has been taken from its owner in an unfamiliar location, this feature will restrict access to the same areas protected by Stolen Device Protection.
There are no details on when these features will be announced, but code seen by 9to5Mac makes it clear that they are in active development. Hopefully, they will come sooner rather than later.
You can learn more about Stolen Device Protection here.
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