Apple is working on new iPhone security features that can automatically lock your iPhone when it detects that it has been taken from your hands. Here are the details:
Apple tracks iPhone snatchers
Many of us know the feeling of looking at your iPhone one moment and then staring at an empty hand the next. By the time you realize what happened, the person who took your device is already out of reach.
Over the years, Apple has significantly improved iPhone anti-theft features with features like Find My, Activation Lock, and Stolen Device Protection.
However, many of these protections can be of little use if your device is left unlocked and stolen by a thief.
Although Apple has implemented time-based security delays to prevent drastic changes to your Apple ID, the reality is that if a thief gets their hands on an unlocked iPhone, they can still cause significant damage.
That’s why Apple is working on a new feature that will automatically lock your iPhone when the system detects that it has been taken from your hands, similar to Android’s Theft Detection Lock.
These systems rely on several signals, including the iPhone’s accelerometer, to detect when the device has been taken from the user’s hands. Automatically locks your iPhone when it detects snatching.
To further determine if an iPhone may have been stolen from its owner, the feature also monitors its distance from a paired Apple Watch.
Additionally, once fully implemented and enabled, this feature will take into account the same rules that apply to stolen device protection, such as whether your iPhone is connected to a familiar WiFi network and in a familiar location, such as your home or work.
In addition to automatically locking the device if these conditions suggest that the iPhone has been taken from its owner in an unknown location, this feature restricts access to the same areas protected by Stolen Device Protection.
There are no details on when these features will be announced, but the code seen by 9to5Mac makes it clear that these features are currently in development. Hopefully they will come sooner or later.
Learn more about stolen device protection.
Worth checking out on Amazon
