Apple Introduces Screen/Battery/Camera Loss Lock in iOS 18, Enabling Remote Lock Even After Theft and Disassembly

Apple products, once in Lost Mode, are nearly impossible to use without the original owner or the password, making it extremely difficult to disable Lost Mode.

In the gray market, when an iPhone is stolen, IT specialists from these networks immediately launch phishing websites to trick users into entering their passwords.

If the black and gray market fails to deceive the user into giving up their Apple ID password, the stolen iPhone's fate is usually to be disassembled, and its parts sold to third-party phone repair shops.

However, as iPhone's main components are equipped with chips, Apple uses these chips to differentiate between original and third-party parts, and now, Apple has added a loss lock mode within these components.

In the latest release candidate version of iOS 18, Apple has enabled a Lost Mode for major components including screens, batteries, and cameras. Once the user activates Lost Mode, these parts will also automatically lock.

When these components are installed in another iPhone and connected to the internet for activation, the phone will display a message indicating that it needs repair and specify which component is locked and must be unlocked to be used.

Currently, this feature supports iPhone 12 and later models. By default, the Find My iPhone feature is enabled, so once Lost Mode is activated after an iPhone is lost, the components will also be locked.

Theoretically, this doesn't completely solve the issue of theft and disassembly, as iPhone batteries can be dismantled and replaced with unlocked chips. However, this new feature is expected to increase the cost and complexity for the black and gray market, aiding in the fight against such illicit activities.

Apple has not yet officially detailed this feature, but with the official release of iOS 18 imminent, detailed support documentation explaining which components can be locked is expected soon.