Researcher demonstrates Apple iOS 18 security feature rebooting an iPhone after 72 hours of inactivity
Last week brought reports of police officials warning other departments that iPhones being stored in evidence for forensic examination were rebooting themselves.
Apple has a history of frustrating law enforcement, from denying requests to help unlock phones to refusing to add backdoors to its software. The latest Cupertino feature annoying officers and forensic experts is iOS 18's inactivity reboot tool, which reboots an iPhone after three days of inactivity. Now, researchers have demonstrated it in action.
Last week brought reports of police officials warning other departments that iPhones being stored in evidence for forensic examination were rebooting themselves. 404Media writes that security experts later confirmed that Apple had quietly introduced the feature in iOS 18.1.
Rebooting an iPhone makes it more difficult to break into using forensic tools such as Magnet Forensics' Graykey. The company wrote its own post on the feature and its security implications.
Jiska Classen, a researcher at the Hasso Plattner Institute and one of the first to notice the rebooting, published a video demonstrating it (via TechCrunch). The video confirms that iOS 18 reboots a handset after 72 hours of inactivity. The iPhone does this without any prompts or warnings.
See the latest iOS inactivity reboot in action!
iOS 18 comes with improved anti-theft measures. Three days w/o unlock, the iPhone will reboot, preventing thieves from getting your data. (1/4) pic.twitter.com/H24Tfo1cSr
– Jiska (@naehrdine) November 13, 2024
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