8mo ago

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

www.theverge.com

"There is an apparently new iOS 18 security feature that reboots iPhones that haven’t been unlocked in a few days, frustrating police by making it harder to break into suspects’ iPhones

...

Apple added “inactivity reboot” code in iOS 18.1 that triggers iPhones to restart after they’ve been locked for four days"

38 comments

I hope this gets added to Android.
- Its in GrapheneOS(an android custom ROM) if you're that way inclined.
  
  Sadly I can't, need to keep the stock OS for work.
  
  Came here to say this
  
  GrapheneOS is not a custom ROM
- Android is already disabling fingerprint reader every 72 hours. So what's the difference?
  
  The encryption key of the device storage is kept in memory while in AFU state for practical reasons, you don't want to wait for the encryption key to be generated everytime you unlock the device, then wait for apps to restart and sync their data.
  A reboot will discard that key from memory and return the phone back in BFU state, making it much more difficult to extract data from a device.
  https://blogs.dsu.edu/digforce/2023/08/23/bfu-and-afu-lock-states/
- Some do. Enable "auto restart" if your phone has it.
- I believe this option just came to my Pixel 7 a few weeks back.
Wait I thought we were supposed to hate on iphones here.
- Yeah, I debated whether to post it or not. = )
- iPhones suck. This is still an objective improvement to them and currently an advantage over Android. Hatred and blind hatred aren't the same.
  
  GrapheneOS supports it.
- Broken clock... Twice a day... ya know
Last week it was theorized that iOS 18 would reboot after 24 hours if it lost connection from the internet. That would be even better, since it would fuck people trying to work around FindMy.
- How do you mean trying to work around FindMy? Like phone thieves?
  
  Thieves, authorities, crazy ex, anyone.
  FindMy will allow you to remotely secure or wipe the device. But the device needs to be online to get that request to lock or wipe from iCloud.
- Hopefully they've implemented it in a way that the phone can still get wiped before initial unlock.
  
  Yeah, it will wipe if it’s locked. It wipes as soon as it gets the request from cloud. So immediately if it’s online, or if it’s unable to reach the internet, it wipes once it connects to a cellular or wifi network.
I don't get it... Why is rebooting a locked phone more secure?
- Every time the phone reboots, it disables biometric unlocking until the correct pin is entered.
  Most hacking tools that police have access to take advantage of the weaker security found in the biometric unlock mode.
  By randomly restarting, the phone’s storage stays fully encrypted until the correct pin or passcode is entered, which is far more secure as it takes either a brute force attack to guess the correct pin, or a court order compelling the person to provide the pin or passcode.
  Fun fact, in the United States, a pin or passcode is considered private property, and the police can’t legally force you to provide it without a warrant. However, your face or fingerprints are not considered private property, and they can and have used biometrics to unlock phones without user consent or a warrant before.
  If you ever get stopped by the cops, make sure to reboot your phone so they have a harder time finding incriminating evidence.
  
  You don’t have to reboot it. You just have to click the main side button several times (10?). Which you can do by feel.

38 comments