Apple Confirmed To Thwart Police From Using Brute Force To Unlock iOS 12 Devices

Apple has brought a new USB restriction mode in iOS 12 will make it harder for law enforcement agencies to crack the iPhone. Reuters reporte...

Apple has brought a new USB restriction mode in iOS 12 will make it harder for law enforcement agencies to crack the iPhone. Reuters reported that Apple has admitted that it will bring these new features, but is aimed at users, not law enforcement agencies.

“We’re constantly strengthening the security protections in every Apple product to help customers defend against hackers, identity thieves and intrusions into their personal data,” Apple said in a prepared statement. “We have the greatest respect for law enforcement, and we don’t design our security improvements to frustrate their efforts to do their jobs.”

An Apple spokesperson explained in a statement that Apple has been seeking ways to improve the security of Apple devices.  Although Apple claims that this move is preventing individual users from cracking the iPhone, it is clear that its true intention is to prevent law enforcement agencies from using cracking methods.

Here is how the new USB restriction mode works: if an iPhone hasn't been unlocked in the past hour, then the iPhone needs to be connected to the computer via USB to unlock by a password. In other words, police forces have only one hour to use tools such as Cellebrite or GrayKey to crack an iPhone with iOS 12 installed on it.

Image Via 9to5Mac