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Apple Says Sorry For iPhone Error 53 and Issues IOS 9.2.1 Update To Fix It (betanews.com)

Posted by yaelk on from the apple-bugs dept.

Mark Wilson writes: Apple has a lot of support at the moment for its stance on encryption and refusing the FBI access to an iPhone's contents, but it's only a couple of weeks since the company was seen in a less favorable light. There was quite a backlash when users found that installing an update to iOS resulted in Error 53 and a bricked iPhone. Apple initially said that Error 53 was caused 'for security reasons' following speculation that it was a bid to stop people from using third party repair shops. iFixit suggested that the problem was a result of a failure of parts to correctly sync, and Apple has been rounding criticized for failing to come up with a fix. Today the company has issued an apology, along with an update that ensures Error 53 won't happen again. But there's more good news ... If you were talked into paying for an out of warranty replacement as a result of Error 53, you could be in line to get your money back.

3 of 123 comments (clear)

  1. It's a trap! by xombo · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Stealthily pushing out an update that will make cracking the Secure Enclave easier in future FBI investigations?

  2. wait a second by davecotter · · Score: 3, Interesting

    i thought the point of this error 53 was to purposely render your data inaccessible in the case where the touchID had been tampered with? when i read about it, i was like, the people that are whining about this don't fully understand security, that this bricking thing is actually good, cuz a bad guy could replace a real touch sensor with a compromised one, then unlock the phone with a fake fingerprint. now, with this "fix", it seems a bad guy could do exactly that? i'm sure i'm missing something.

  3. My wife got a free new phone due to this bug by leonbev · · Score: 4, Interesting

    The Touch ID sensor died on my wife's iPhone 6S, and it prevented the iOS 9.2.1 update from installing even after doing a factory reset.

    The Apple Store couldn't fix the issue, so she got a brand new phone out of the deal. Good thing the phone was still under warranty!