The confusion regarding automatic restart of iPhone is being cleared. As of iOS 18, Apple devices automatically restart after exactly 72 hours of inactivity, as security researchers have now documented. If the user does not unlock their iPhone for a period of 3 days, an independent reboot occurs. This makes it more difficult for third parties to extract data from the smartphone.
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American police officials were the first to notice this incident and put forward unfounded hypotheses about it. This means that attempts to access seized devices face significantly higher barriers to entry.
Sudden restart without warning
The timer for this inactivity restart can already be found in the code of iOS 18.0, Security company Magnet Forensics meanwhile explainedThe function is completely linked to the locked state of the device and is not affected by other factors such as mobile phone connection or active flight mode. An explicit reference to such “idle reboot” then appears in the device log files. It is not present in previous iOS versions. US investigators were puzzled by the unusual behavior shortly after the general release of iOS 18 in September.
Unlike automatic restarts, for example with system updates, iOS displays no indication of an upcoming inactivity restart – and therefore does not allow you to cancel it. A Video from security researcher Jiska Claassen shows the processKlassen says this also ultimately improves protection against theft, because thieves can’t keep stolen devices active for long and then potentially unlock them with older, cheaper forensic tools.
Data fully encrypted after restart
A freshly booted iPhone shows almost no data in the “before first unlock” state as it remains completely encrypted. However, if a user has unlocked their iPhone at least once after restarting by entering the device code, experienced forensic tools can read more user data – even without knowing the device code or Even without cracking. In this “after first unlock” situation, some data may be extracted if it is not specifically protected by apps or the operating system.
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