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Che Castro

macrumors 603
Original poster
May 21, 2009
5,878
676
If the data is erased will i still be able to track the lost phone using find my iPhone?

Are you guys leaving erase data after 10 fail attempts on ?
 

ideal.dreams

macrumors 68020
Jul 19, 2010
2,374
1,073
If the data on your phone is erased, so will the iCloud account you would use to track your phone, so no. You won't be able to track it if it's wiped.

I no longer use a passcode (too annoying to disable every time I needed Siri for something) but when I did, I did not use the option to wipe the phone after 10 failed attempts.
 

falterego

macrumors 6502
Dec 28, 2008
280
0
Southern California
I have a complex passcode that is required after an hour (basically when I wake up in the morning and perhaps once later in the day). It is set to never wipe the data. The chances of someone guessing my passcode are pretty slim. 29 characters that are mixed case, numbers, punctuation and spaces. Not too worried. I can initiate a wipe from either iCloud or my Exchange server.
 

Arnezie

macrumors 65816
Oct 10, 2011
1,317
115
I have a complex passcode that is required after an hour (basically when I wake up in the morning and perhaps once later in the day). It is set to never wipe the data. The chances of someone guessing my passcode are pretty slim. 29 characters that are mixed case, numbers, punctuation and spaces. Not too worried. I can initiate a wipe from either iCloud or my Exchange server.

Paranoid much :confused:

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If the data is erased will i still be able to track the lost phone using find my iPhone?

Are you guys leaving erase data after 10 fail attempts on ?

No
And no
 

ideal.dreams

macrumors 68020
Jul 19, 2010
2,374
1,073
Siri works when the phone is locked.

Yes, I am aware of that. However, in order to view a map, or edit a text, or use the web, etc, you have to unlock the phone first. Easier for me to just not use a passcode.
 

falterego

macrumors 6502
Dec 28, 2008
280
0
Southern California
Paranoid much :confused:

Paranoid much


No, my phone is my everything device. With it a person would have access to almost all of my email accounts, my bank accounts, my Google authenticator, my contacts, password and other account information for work. I'd rather be inconvenienced for 10 seconds a couple times a day than have to deal with the huge problem that would ensue if my phone were stolen with a simple 4 digit passcode. I selected the option to not wipe after 10 tries because, like many people, I have some dickish friends.
 

Arnezie

macrumors 65816
Oct 10, 2011
1,317
115
No, my phone is my everything device. With it a person would have access to almost all of my email accounts, my bank accounts, my Google authenticator, my contacts, password and other account information for work. I'd rather be inconvenienced for 10 seconds a couple times a day than have to deal with the huge problem that would ensue if my phone were stolen with a simple 4 digit passcode. I selected the option to not wipe after 10 tries because, like many people, I have some dickish friends.

With a 4 digit pass code there are 10,000 possible codes , With 29 characters your odds shoot up into the multi millions of possible guesses. So yea your a bit paranoid.
 

falterego

macrumors 6502
Dec 28, 2008
280
0
Southern California
Just to add, if you don't have the phone set to wipe, it is fairly easy to build a program to go through all 10,000 options in a matter of minutes. With a complex passcode it's not such an easy task. If I can't send a remote wipe command to my phone at least I know it'll take them years if not lifetimes to guess the passcode I used.
 

Daveoc64

macrumors 601
Jan 16, 2008
4,074
92
Bristol, UK
Just to add, if you don't have the phone set to wipe, it is fairly easy to build a program to go through all 10,000 options in a matter of minutes. With a complex passcode it's not such an easy task. If I can't send a remote wipe command to my phone at least I know it'll take them years if not lifetimes to guess the passcode I used.

Indeed.

There are cracks available for iOS devices that only use a 4 digit passcode.

The number of combinations is trivial for a computer to brute force.
 

falterego

macrumors 6502
Dec 28, 2008
280
0
Southern California
Indeed.

There are cracks available for iOS devices that only use a 4 digit passcode.

The number of combinations is trivial for a computer to brute force.

Hell, I've brute forced open a physical lock box with a 4 digit combo. It only took a couple hours scrolling wheels around before I got to the combo in the 2400 range. By my math I could have gone through all 10k options in about 8-9 hours. Would be even faster if I didn't have to pull a lever at each number (like the iPhone that just immediately goes on the 4th number entered)
 

levymetal

macrumors newbie
May 11, 2011
12
7
Hell, I've brute forced open a physical lock box with a 4 digit combo. It only took a couple hours scrolling wheels around before I got to the combo in the 2400 range. By my math I could have gone through all 10k options in about 8-9 hours. Would be even faster if I didn't have to pull a lever at each number (like the iPhone that just immediately goes on the 4th number entered)

I know I'm thread digging here, but this article is a top result for a common search, so I thought I'd add the following information which many people will find useful.

After 5 failed attempts, the iPhone makes you wait before you can try another code. This ranges from 1 minute on the 6th to 60 minutes on the 9th & 10th. Every 10 codes takes 141 minutes of waiting, which for 10,000 combinations is a maximum of 98 days of continuous trying and waiting. Of course it depends on your passcode and algorithm used (could start with most common pincodes first and work backwards), but still, brute forcing isn't as easy as you'd think.

Source: http://cinnamonthoughts.org/2010/09/13/ios-passcode-waiting-intervals-for-failed-attempts/

Having said that, I still let my iPhone erase it's data after 10 failed attempts. Insurance covers the bulk of it, so the few hundred $$$ I have to pay out of my pocket to replace it is nothing compared to having someone potentially access my data.
 

MEJHarrison

macrumors 68000
Feb 2, 2009
1,522
2,723
No, my phone is my everything device. With it a person would have access to almost all of my email accounts, my bank accounts, my Google authenticator, my contacts, password and other account information for work. I'd rather be inconvenienced for 10 seconds a couple times a day than have to deal with the huge problem that would ensue if my phone were stolen with a simple 4 digit passcode. I selected the option to not wipe after 10 tries because, like many people, I have some dickish friends.

Or do what I do. Get an app that stores all those passwords and account numbers and photos and whatever else you don't want someone to see. My entire life is on my phone and I don't have a passcode. Because the important stuff is securely encrypted on my phone. Also, I keep my phone on me 24x7. People don't have an opportunity to mess with my device.

That said, my kids love passcodes. My 10 year old has had to reset his iPod I don't know how many times now because he changes it constantly and forgets.
 

falterego

macrumors 6502
Dec 28, 2008
280
0
Southern California
I know I'm thread digging here, but this article is a top result for a common search, so I thought I'd add the following information which many people will find useful.

After 5 failed attempts, the iPhone makes you wait before you can try another code. This ranges from 1 minute on the 6th to 60 minutes on the 9th & 10th. Every 10 codes takes 141 minutes of waiting, which for 10,000 combinations is a maximum of 98 days of continuous trying and waiting. Of course it depends on your passcode and algorithm used (could start with most common pincodes first and work backwards), but still, brute forcing isn't as easy as you'd think.

Source: http://cinnamonthoughts.org/2010/09/13/ios-passcode-waiting-intervals-for-failed-attempts/

Having said that, I still let my iPhone erase it's data after 10 failed attempts. Insurance covers the bulk of it, so the few hundred $$$ I have to pay out of my pocket to replace it is nothing compared to having someone potentially access my data.

Good point. I realized this yesterday when I had a user bring back their device. I was not able to get into it and had to plug into iTunes in recovery mode to do a restore. Another reason why my phone is set to wipe after 3 incorrect attempts. I'm not letting them get that far.
 
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