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Passcode, find my phone, and powering down

D

duncanapple

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 12, 2008
472
12
This thread is less about a specific question and more for general discussion - but why does apple allow the iphone to be turned off when its passcode locked? After reading about several MR members who had phones stolen wherein the thief simply turned it off to avoid tracking, it seems like there would be an easy fix for this.

It would be nice if the passcode lock would lock out the power switch to avoid being turned off OR the phone could somehow be awaken from being turned off via find my phone. I am guessing option one is more secure from an individuals privacy standpoint (I also like knowing when a device is off, its off) and likely easier to implement as well.

So what says you? Wouldn't this be a nice feature for a future revision of iOS? I don't even really understand why it has been overlooked this long? I'd even like to see a passcode required to restore the phone when its plugged into iTunes but that may present problems if there were ever some major hang up on your phone and it was frozen. A hard reset is sometimes a nice safety net.
 
1. A passcode is currently required if you are trying to restore an iPhone (iPod touch/iPad).

2. Going to Settings> General> Restrictions> Locations> "Don't Allow Changes" will disable the ability to turn Find My iPhone off unless a passcode is entered.

3. Apple currently gives you the ability to assist in locating your device, but they are not required nor are they responsible to keep track of your stolen device. Not allowing the device to be turned off is a bit excessive considering they already offer option 1 and 2 (above).

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Maybe you misunderstood - I am not asking for apples help in tracking my phone (your point #3 above) nor am I saying the device should not be able to be turned off ever - I am just saying you shouldn't be able to turn the phone off when the device is locked. Currently if you don't know the code, you can still just shut the phone down. Doesn't seem like a huge burden? And the ability to turn off find my phone (your #2 point above) isn't the issue - if the phone is locked they cant change anything at all regardless of the restrictions. But they CAN turn the phone off. How hard would it be to first have to put in your passcode before you turned the phone off (assuming you haven't unlocked it in the time frame you can specify)?
 
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What use is the iphone to the thief if its always turned off? Is he thinking I've stole this iphone so I'll never switch it on so they can never catch me?

He will have to turn it on at some point, and you can set an email alert on find my iphone for when he does.
 
There is a jailbreak app that stops the phone from powering down using the normal method if it is locked.
Of course there is always going to be a way around it because they can put it in DFU mode. Apple can't have phones disabled every time someone forgets their password. At least your data is protected from the average person who finds your phone.
 
For one thing they could turn it off until they have time to take the SIM out (for an iphone) or just until they can wipe the thing clean. I realize a savvy thief is still going to get your phone but not allowing the thing to be powered down while locked seems like it's not an inconvenience for the owner and one additional layer of hassle for a thief to work around. Another example would be if the thief is still nearby and you want to use another iphone to make yours play the noise - by being allowed to power the phone down this obviously wouldn't work.

Not only that, but if you are just waiting for the thief to turn the phone back on you're on his/her time table and waiting, wasting time. You should be able to track your phone when you want to, not when the thief decides to turn it on. Again, why put any more control in the thief's hands than ness? I don't see a downside to locking out the power button??
 
Low battery when stolen, it will power off anyway. No way to stop that with a passcode.
 
DefBref said:
Low battery when stolen, it will power off anyway. No way to stop that with a passcode.
Click to expand...

Again, not that I disagree with this statement per se but it still doesn't explain away why you can turn off the phone when its passcode locked. I'd still rather it stay on as long as possible so I can track it rather than let the thief shut it off - because in that case I can't track it anyway.
 
duncanapple said:
Again, not that I disagree with this statement per se but it still doesn't explain away why you can turn off the phone when its passcode locked. I'd still rather it stay on as long as possible so I can track it rather than let the thief shut it off - because in that case I can't track it anyway.
Click to expand...

I hear what you're saying but all they gotta do is pop out the sim and then wether on or off it doesnt matter.
You still wont be able to track it.
There's a way around everything.
 
Also true, but may as well make it one step harder than simply turning the phone off. If they are still in the vicinity or making a break for it (assuming you know your phone is gone within a few minutes) you may still be able to track them before they get a paperclip or whatever to pop the sim out. I agree that isn't hard to do, but it they either have to take the time to stop and do that, or they have to get to a place they can. I would assume most thieves grab iPhones as crimes of opportunity, not ness premeditated...

I don't know lol - apparently no one agrees with me, i'll rest my case :eek:
 
duncanapple said:
I don't know lol - apparently no one agrees with me, i'll rest my case :eek:
Click to expand...

Well there is an app that disables turning the phone off when a password is set, so someone does agree with you. I think it just disables the slide to power off option, and you can still put the device in dfu mode if needed.
Coinicidentally I had that app on my phone when I forgot my password a couple weeks ago. I am glad there was an option for me to restore my own phone.
 
dave420 said:
Well there is an app that disables turning the phone off when a password is set, so someone does agree with you. I think it just disables the slide to power off option, and you can still put the device in dfu mode if needed.
Coinicidentally I had that app on my phone when I forgot my password a couple weeks ago. I am glad there was an option for me to restore my own phone.
Click to expand...

I doubt that was on stock firmware. On JB iphone OS maybe?
I agree that there shouldnt be a way to power it off but we gotta remember that find my iphone is not a theft security or stolen recovery system.
Its just there to help you find misplaced devices.
 
Applejuiced said:
I doubt that was on stock firmware. On JB iphone OS maybe?
Click to expand...

Yea there are a couple apps that do that in Cydia. iCaughtU and iGotYa are the two I tried. They also can email a picture to you anytime someone enters the wrong code.
 
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