One of the things Apple tried to do with iOS 7 was put an emphasis on security in addition to some of their security features such as Find My iPhone. This resulted in the Activation Lock feature which would require users to enter a password to erase the device, and a password to sign back in to prove that the device was erased legitimately as opposed to being erased by a thief to resell on the black market. Government officials were a bit skeptical at first but they have since released a statement praising the Activation Lock feature.
In a statement released by New York Attorney General, Eric Schneiderman, and San Francisco District Attorney, George Gascon, “After months of pressure from a global coalition of elected officials and law enforcement agencies, we are pleased that Apple is set to release a new mobile operating system that includes a theft deterrent feature called Activation Lock. This is an important first step towards ending the global epidemic of smartphone theft.” While Activation Lock is indeed a clever feature, it is not the end all to security problems and the statement notes that it is at the very least, a “step forward”. What do you guys think?
Filed in . Read more about iOS 7.