This Overlooked iOS Feature Might Protect Your iPhone From Attackers
This Overlooked iOS Feature Might Protect Your iPhone From Attackers
https://www.bgr.com/2094869/ios-feature-lockdown-protect-iphone/
Publish Date: 2026-02-06 13:07:00
Source Domain: www.bgr.com
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The iPhone’s anti-theft protections can secure your device against unauthorized use if it’s lost or stolen. However, hackers who have more advanced tools at their disposal may attempt to break into your device after getting their hands on it. Apple’s devices have a more advanced defense system that can protect persons of interest from sophisticated attacks, which has been built into iOS since version16: Lockdown Mode.
Many people may not be aware of what it is or how it works, given that it usually doesn’t receive much attention. However, the FBI’s failure to break into Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson’s iPhone, which had Lockdown Mode enabled, brought the functionality some well-deserved recognition. It’s unclear how the FBI tried to gain access to the iPhone it seized from Natanson, but the Bureau is the kind of agency that may have sophisticated tools at its disposal to break into locked devices, bypassing their protections. ComputerWorld speculates that the FBI may have tried to connect the iPhone to a computer or accessory, the kind of action that Lockdown Mode prevents.
The iPhone is Natanson’s work iPhone provided by the Washington Post, Tech Radar reports, and the newspaper filed a court motion to prevent the agency from accessing the data. That’s how the FBI confirmed it could not breach the iPhone’s security, saying in court documents that its Computer Analysis Response Team could not “extract the device.”
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