iPhone 17 Does Apple install malware to slow your old phone down?

[Merkava_4]

This (unsubstantiated and unverified) former Apple software engineer says that Apple installs malware on your phone for the purpose of slowing it down during a software update to entice you into upgrading to the latest model.

Fake propaganda or true?

https://twitter.com/x/status/2052015524549398589

 

[MacCheetah3]

Extremely unlikely. Foremost, there’s no need. New features and general advancements — I realize those choice words are debatable by some — in software are extra difficult/impossible for previous/older hardware.

 

[iHorseHead]

I can't find her name, so it's impossible to confirm whether or not she used to be a former software engineer at Apple.
I don't believe this though. I guess I've experienced too many low and mid budget Android phones and they've really slowed down. I had a Motorola phone that loaded Uber app for example for 15 minutes before it opened and it lagged.
I've never even had such issues with the iPhone 5s. My iPad mini 2 is still quite snappy on iOS 12, unless I browse the web, which I can't do anymore anyways, because Cloudfare doesn't let me visit any site.
I don't really know… I am still happy with my MacBook Air M1 Base model and iPhone 14, iPhone 12 mini and iPad 9th generation. All of them are way faster than my parents A-series phones and their old laptops.

 

[baconcat_8964]

I don't think "malware" is a proper word for this. Indeed newer softwares run slower on older hardwares, but it usually related to more complicated features, which requires faster chip.

The only thing I could think as "malicious software", is Apple intended to add "wait(6000ms)" code when running on older devices.

 

[FreakinEurekan]

Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.

 

[Apple_Robert]

She is full of hot air.

 

[eyoungren]

This (unsubstantiated and unverified) former Apple software engineer says that Apple installs malware on your phone for the purpose of slowing it down during a software update to entice you into upgrading to the latest model.

Fake propaganda or true?

https://twitter.com/x/status/2052015524549398589

Let me consult my primary phone, an iPhone 11 Pro Max running iOS 26.4.2.

My phone says…nope.

 

[MacInTO]

I wouldn't put it past Apple. They were sued previously, and lost, for throttling older phones. Has everyone forgotten about that already?

 

[Tagbert]

I wouldn't put it past Apple. They were sued previously, and lost, for throttling older phones. Has everyone forgotten about that already?

No, we haven’t forgotten when they put code into one phone, the iPhone 6, to slow down when the battery aged to a certain point that it couldn’t supply power quickly enough and the phones would crash. The chemistry of the phones turned out to have a problem so they added software to check for an aged battery and limit the current draw.

It was a reasonable solution to a technical problem but they didn’t handle it well by making it public so when it came out some people thought that Apple was making phones slow to get people to buy new ones. That never made sense, what kind of marketing makes a product less appealing to get people to buy more?

The fact is that in those days, phone processors and performance were getting much faster each year. Software that was mainly written using newer devices would sometimes run slower on older devices because they had weaker processors. Remember when the “S” phone was the one you wanted because that one had the faster chip generation in it. Now, each year’s phone chips, while certainly faster than previous years in absolute terms, doesn’t feel that much faster because the old ones are still running strong. That why you don’t see this happen as much anymore. Most years the new OS works just fine on phones that are several years old. Tahoe is somewhat of an exception due to the added processing for the transparency and optical effect that can feel a little sluggish on some older processors.

 

[James6s]

No. My partners 14 Plus with the A15 chip is running surprisingly fast on the latest iOS 26.4.2 with no slow down.

My 16 Pro Max is running top tier and no slower than my previous iPhone 17 during my daily usage.

I have an old iPhone 8 in the house and that too is running surprisingly well on its last version of iOS 16, battery life is terrible though lol.

 

[racerhomie]

A bunch of nonsense. iPhones from 2015 are still perfectly usable.

 

[Harddrive]

Keywords former which could indicate disgruntled employee who could still be in violation of her NDA she probably signed as a software engineer at Apple just food for thought most will not cross that line unless she was not and the story was fabricated then she may still be in legal trouble over a fabrication.

 

[kitKAC]

No, thank you.

 

[jchap]

News for people who will believe anything, just because they want to.

 

[FeliApple]

The update itself is the malware. They don’t need to install anything specific, as the new (garbage) “features” kill battery life and impact performance already.

The question is whether this is deliberate. I don’t know. It is possible. How can the keyboard be impeccable on the original iOS version and after three or four major updates it starts lagging, every single time?

The battery life issue is especially pathetic. They’re obliterated. Grab an iPhone 6s on iOS 15 and it gets two hours. I’ve never understood why the same things happen every time. Because there comes a point in which you must do better even if you sacrifice features.

Or wait… who am I kidding? People update anyway and tolerate iOS malware, so why would Apple care at all? This does not impact sales because a new device fixes the issue. Those who do not update like me are eventually forced to buy anyway because developers are pathetic garbage that remove support way too quickly. So the system works perfectly for Apple. Putting in the effort and resources to keep iOS as stable as it is on the original versions is probably not even worth it because people don’t care.

Deliberate or not, what they do is awful. I fight it by staying behind (and it works for a while), but eventually I have to upgrade. Then again, my iPhone Xʀ on iOS 12 was totally fine compatibility-wise until well past the release of iOS 17 (I upgraded a few months later to my 16 Plus on iOS 18), so you have some years. It is what it is, these devices can’t work forever on the original version, much to my dismay.

 

[eyoungren]

I wouldn't put it past Apple. They were sued previously, and lost, for throttling older phones. Has everyone forgotten about that already?

Nope. Fortunately, I was largely jailbroken on my 6s+ with iOS 9.0.2 and had a good battery at the time.

 

[Nada Ting]

I wouldn't put it past Apple. They were sued previously, and lost, for throttling older phones. Has everyone forgotten about that already?

All the more reason for them to not try it again.

 

[ayephoner]

No, we haven’t forgotten when they put code into one phone, the iPhone 6, to slow down when the battery aged to a certain point that it couldn’t supply power quickly enough and the phones would crash. The chemistry of the phones turned out to have a problem so they added software to check for an aged battery and limit the current draw.

It was a reasonable solution to a technical problem but they didn’t handle it well by making it public so when it came out some people thought that Apple was making phones slow to get people to buy new ones. That never made sense, what kind of marketing makes a product less appealing to get people to buy more?

The fact is that in those days, phone processors and performance were getting much faster each year. Software that was mainly written using newer devices would sometimes run slower on older devices because they had weaker processors. Remember when the “S” phone was the one you wanted because that one had the faster chip generation in it. Now, each year’s phone chips, while certainly faster than previous years in absolute terms, doesn’t feel that much faster because the old ones are still running strong. That why you don’t see this happen as much anymore. Most years the new OS works just fine on phones that are several years old. Tahoe is somewhat of an exception due to the added processing for the transparency and optical effect that can feel a little sluggish on some older processors.

It's incredibly reasonable when you know and understand the details.

Unfortunately, the general public can't be bothered to spend 5 minutes injesting the details prior to forming a passionate opinion.

 

[racerhomie]

The update itself is the malware. They don’t need to install anything specific, as the new (garbage) “features” kill battery life and impact performance already.

The question is whether this is deliberate. I don’t know. It is possible. How can the keyboard be impeccable on the original iOS version and after three or four major updates it starts lagging, every single time?

The battery life issue is especially pathetic. They’re obliterated. Grab an iPhone 6s on iOS 15 and it gets two hours. I’ve never understood why the same things happen every time. Because there comes a point in which you must do better even if you sacrifice features.

Or wait… who am I kidding? People update anyway and tolerate iOS malware, so why would Apple care at all? This does not impact sales because a new device fixes the issue. Those who do not update like me are eventually forced to buy anyway because developers are pathetic garbage that remove support way too quickly. So the system works perfectly for Apple. Putting in the effort and resources to keep iOS as stable as it is on the original versions is probably not even worth it because people don’t care.

Deliberate or not, what they do is awful. I fight it by staying behind (and it works for a while), but eventually I have to upgrade. Then again, my iPhone Xʀ on iOS 12 was totally fine compatibility-wise until well past the release of iOS 17 (I upgraded a few months later to my 16 Plus on iOS 18), so you have some years. It is what it is, these devices can’t work forever on the original version, much to my dismay.

Get a battery replacement on your old devices. They will return back to normal

 

[Astuces iOS]

This (unsubstantiated and unverified) former Apple software engineer says that Apple installs malware on your phone for the purpose of slowing it down during a software update to entice you into upgrading to the latest model.

Fake propaganda or true?

https://twitter.com/x/status/2052015524549398589

Bro let's make it simple, every software update improves features and those require more resources...

 

[HouseLannister]

No man bun or unkempt beard? I think she meant to say she used to be a former Starbucks barista. A software engineer would have shown you the code, not done a walk and talk.

 

[RealKeishav]

People will call me psycho but animations on my iPad 9 are much smoother in newer version of iOS 26 than it was on 18 but it lags terribly on websites with ton of ads

 

[NoBoMac]

Influencer wanna be. Has a YouTube with a whopping 240 subs. Worked in NYC (says she quit her 9-5 job), lives in area as rides MTA. Pictures in office show a real dump of a space. So, sure, REALLY believable 🙄

Oh and: On her TikTok, she's in the crummy office space working on some cheap-o PC. Who knew that Apple did not "eat their own dog food" for software development.

 

[Artemiz]

The update itself is the malware. They don’t need to install anything specific, as the new (garbage) “features” kill battery life and impact performance already.

The question is whether this is deliberate. I don’t know. It is possible. How can the keyboard be impeccable on the original iOS version and after three or four major updates it starts lagging, every single time?

The battery life issue is especially pathetic. They’re obliterated. Grab an iPhone 6s on iOS 15 and it gets two hours. I’ve never understood why the same things happen every time. Because there comes a point in which you must do better even if you sacrifice features.

Or wait… who am I kidding? People update anyway and tolerate iOS malware, so why would Apple care at all? This does not impact sales because a new device fixes the issue. Those who do not update like me are eventually forced to buy anyway because developers are pathetic garbage that remove support way too quickly. So the system works perfectly for Apple. Putting in the effort and resources to keep iOS as stable as it is on the original versions is probably not even worth it because people don’t care.

Deliberate or not, what they do is awful. I fight it by staying behind (and it works for a while), but eventually I have to upgrade. Then again, my iPhone Xʀ on iOS 12 was totally fine compatibility-wise until well past the release of iOS 17 (I upgraded a few months later to my 16 Plus on iOS 18), so you have some years. It is what it is, these devices can’t work forever on the original version, much to my dismay.

If Apple weren't such a huge corporation, they could sue you for defamation and slander and actually WIN. Cuz you have no evidence besides your opinions that defy science.

 

[Lounge vibes 05]

I wouldn't put it past Apple. They were sued previously, and lost, for throttling older phones. Has everyone forgotten about that already?

On the other hand, wouldn’t you say that given the extremely bad press apple caught from that when it happened, and due to them being basically the most scrutinized company in the world, where even a line of changed code is noticed, they wouldn’t even risk something like this? Let alone get away with it, surely if they were just slipping in some extra slow down software every year into the new operating systems, every September just building in code specifically meant for the only purpose to be to slow down older phones, it would have been picked up on by now 20 years into the products life.
That doesn’t sound very likely to me.