A new iOS 18 security feature makes it harder for police to unlock iPhones

There is an apparently caller iOS 18 information characteristic that reboots iPhones that haven’t been unlocked successful a fewer days, frustrating constabulary by making it harder to break into suspects’ iPhones, according to 404 Media.

404 Media, which first reported constabulary warnings astir the reboots connected Thursday, writes that restarted iPhones participate a much unafraid “Before First Unlock,” aliases BFU state. Now, it seems Apple added “inactivity reboot” codification successful iOS 18.1 that triggers iPhones to restart aft they’ve been locked for 4 days, Chris Wade, who founded mobile study institution Corellium, told the outlet.

Both iOS and Android devices participate this BFU authorities erstwhile they’re restarted, requiring you to participate your passcode (or PIN) to unlock your phone, limiting what benignant of information forensics experts tin extract, according to a blog post from Dakota State University’s digital forensics lab.

Apple didn’t instantly respond to The Verge’s petition for comment. The institution has steadily made iPhones harder to discuss complete the years, putting it astatine likelihood pinch rule enforcement and raising the specter of authorities regulations requiring encryption backdoors. Apple has many times resisted authorities’ requests to create backdoors, though that hasn’t stopped rule enforcement from finding its ain workarounds.