With the arrival iOS 26.4 Apple significantly strengthens security. The Stolen Device Protection feature, which was previously optional, is now activated automatically on all iPhonech. The goal is one: to prevent a scenario where a thief steals the phone and, thanks to the stolen code, gains complete control over the account, money, and data.
Apple This protection was first introduced in 2023, when a new wave of thefts appeared. Attackers first tracked the victim, memorized the access code, and only then iPhone The code itself was then enough to delete accounts, change passwords, or turn off Find My.
What Stolen Device Protection can do
Once the feature is active, sensitive actions can no longer be performed using a code alone. The system requires Face ID or Touch ID, possibly introducing a time delay that gives the owner aancand intervene.
For example, without biometric verification it is no longer possible to:
- view or use passwords and access keys from iCloud Keychains
- Turn off Lost Mode in the Find My app
- lubricate iPhone or use it to set up a new device
- use saved payment methods in Safari
For other operations, such as changing the password Apple account (Apple ID), changing your iPhone passcode or turning off Find My, the system will implement an hour-long security delay and require two-factor biometric verification.
Automatically turned on, but with the exception of
Do iOS 26.4, you had to manually enable this protection in Settings. Now you don't have to worry about anything - the protection runs automatically. Apple butoneThere is a reasonable exception: if iPhone located in a trusted location (typically at home), security delays can be disabled.
From my own experience, I can say that this combination makes the most sense to me. The phone behaves normally at home, but outside it becomes a device that is practically worthless to thieves. In Settings so just go to Face ID and code – Protection of stolen devices and check there Outside of familiar places.
iOS 26.4 is currently available to developers, public beta coming soon and sharp release Apple plans for spring. If you have iPhone, it's one of those updates that's worth installing right away.
well, it would be nice if those "known places" worked for them, my phone behaved as if I was not at home and I have a place set in Find as a place where things should not be considered forgotten and the phone only charges at home, even so it blocked me as if I was in Cambodia 😀
Great‼️☝️😎