MILLIONS of iPhones have a well-hidden button that triggers a “self-destruct” effect when someone tries to break into it.
If they guess your passcode wrong too many times, your iPhone will completely erase all of its contents.
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The person trying to guess your passcode will only get 10 tries.
After that point, Apple says that your iPhone will “erase all information, media, and personal settings”.
The 10 wrong attempts will need to be consecutive – so if you’ve entered it correctly between their guesses, the counter will have reset at that point.
It’s designed to stop someone from doing a “brute-force” attack where they guess your passcode over and over until they get it right.
With the “self-destruct” active, it’ll stop this type of attacker from being able to get access to your texts, photos, and data.
However, note that it’s a total wipe – so turn it on with caution.
Once your iPhone’s data is erased, the only way to get it back is to restore it from a back-up.
If you haven’t backed your iPhone up then you’ll need to set it up as a brand new device.
So if you have young kids, make sure they’re not at risk of potentially tapping in loads of wrong passcodes – and accidentally wiping your iPhone.
At the very least, ensure you back up your iPhone first before activating the feature.
HOW TO SET UP IPHONE ‘SELF-DESTRUCT’
Firstly, make sure that your iPhone is set to back up.
You can back up manually by connecting to Wi-Fi then going to Settings > [Name] > iCloud.
Then you can tap on iCloud Backup > Back Up Now to make sure that your data is saved,.
You can also automatically back up your iPhone.
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Just go to Settings > [Name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup and make sure that you’ve got Back Up This iPhone is turned on.
You’ll need your iPhone connected to a Wi-Fi network and a power source for automatic back-up to take place.
If you don’t have enough iCloud storage, your back-up might not complete. If that’s the case, you’ll need to buy more iCloud storage.
Once you’re happy with your backups, you can then activate the “self-destruct” feature.
IPHONE LOCKING TOO QUICKLY?
You can change that…
If you think your iPhone locks too quickly on its own, you can change the time.
Just go to Settings > Display & Brightness > Auto-Lock.
You can then choose from one of the following time options:
- 30 seconds
- 1 minute
- 2 minutes
- 3 minutes
- 4 minutes
- 5 minutes
- Never
It’s worth noting that if you put your iPhone on the Home Screen and don’t do anything, the Auto-Lock time is “reduced by half”, according to Apple.
Picture Credit: The Sun
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Just go to Settings > Face ID & Passcode or Settings > Touch ID & Passcode.
Then scroll to the bottom of the page and turn on the toggle for Erase Data.
Once that’s active, you’ll only ever have 10 consecutive attempts to enter a correct password before your iPhone auto-wipes.
If you ever change your mind about this feature, you can just go straight back into the Settings app and turn it off.
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You should also read The Sun’s guide to making your iPhone “snooper-proof”.
There are some clever ways to send secret and even “invisible” texts on an iPhone.
And learn the signs that someone has unlocked your iPhone to read your texts.
