Got an iPhone? You probably already have the feeling of having an uninteresting smartphone for thieves. Indeed, it is a priori married to your Apple ID which would prevent any resale or attempt to unlock without code. This is without counting the ingenuity of thieves who can choose to resell the device for its spare parts, or even “virginify” the motherboard via advanced techniques.
When an iPhone is stolen, the reflex of criminals is also immediately put into airplane mode, which prevents localization. The problem is that this airplane mode is accessible without any code, and that it therefore compromises the security of the Locate system. This is why a tip was needed to really prevent Apple product theft. This trick goes through a really well thought out Shortcut as you can see in the video that accompanies Diego Jimenez's tweet.
How to finally double-lock your iPhone's anti-theft security?
This ingenious shortcut forces you to enter a code when anyone tries to engage airplane mode. If the person holding the iPhone tries to activate airplane mode and enters the wrong passcode, the smartphone locks, turns on all connectivity features, goes into power saving mode, and shares its current location.
To create the same shortcut on your iPhone:
- Make sure you have a recent iPhone running iOS 14 or later with the Shortcuts app
- Open Shortcuts
- Go to + > Create personal automation.
- Choose When airplane mode is on
- Add the following actions:
- Request a number with a secret code
- If the field matches [your secret code]
- Activate airplane mode
6.In Else add these actions:
- Lock screen
- Disable airplane mode
- Enable Cellular Data
- Enable Wi-Fi
- Activate Bluetooth
- Get current position
- Send [current position] to [one or more trusted numbers of your choice]
- Activate power saving mode
7.Validate and you're done
The twittos also recommends configuring the Control Center to activate airplane mode so that it is no longer accessible without unlocking from the locked screen, which adds an additional level of security.
For that :
- Go to Settings on your iPhone then Face ID and access code
- In the Allow Lock Access section uncheck Control Center
What do you think of this trick? Do you use Shortcuts on a daily basis? Share your feedback in the comments of this article!