Screen lock on an iphone is a fantastic way to protect against anyone gaining access to your phone without your authorization. Simply set a PIN, pattern or password as part of its setup procedure.
Apple watchers have long warned about Siri’s potential to divulge sensitive data from an iPhone that’s been locked, giving Siri’s loose lips even more reason to be turned off. Now there’s another security bug giving users more reason to do just that.
How to turn on screen lock
If you own an iPhone, chances are it can autolock after a period of inactivity. While this feature can be convenient and secure at once, a recent iOS bug allows hackers to circumvent it using Siri to bypass its lock screen protection and gain access to calling apps, contacts and voicemail.
To combat this issue, the best solution is enabling screen lock on your iPhone. You can do so by swiping down from the top or up from the bottom screen on an iPhone with Touch ID; on other phones without this feature you must swipe up. Also be sure to disable Rotation lock in Control Center since many applications do not function correctly when rotated between landscape and portrait orientations.
How to turn off screen lock
Lock screens are an effective way to protect personal information, yet if entering your password every time you wake up your iPhone gets tedious, there are ways you can remove the lock screen altogether. One option is disabling auto-lock settings in Settings which will prevent its display from turning off after certain periods of inactivity; but be mindful that doing this could decrease phone security.
Install a Cydia modification called Dim to Blackscreen from BigBoss Repo on Cydia for free to convert automatic locks to black screens instead.
Consider disabling Siri’s loose lips on your lock screen. An Israeli security researcher recently identified a flaw in Apple’s iOS 7 that allows anyone to bypass your lock screen and gain access to sensitive information, including contacts and voicemail. The exploit uses both an exploit in Siri’s code as well as one found in FaceTime function of phone to gain entry.
How to disable screen lock
Apple iPhone’s screen lock feature enables users to protect their phone by requiring them to enter a PIN or password to open it. If you want to temporarily disable this feature, simply go into Settings, tap “General,” “Passcode Lock,” and create a six-digit code before entering it in Passcode Lock.
If your device has a passcode lock enabled, it will automatically lock itself after 15 minutes of inactivity – this security measure helps prevent unintended activation in certain scenarios (for instance when mounted to your bike). Some may find this annoying; also others could possibly see your keyboard when typing your password/PIN which could compromise security further.
If your Exchange account syncs with your iPhone, the default passcode lock timeout could be set to “Immediate.” This can be annoying as it requires you to enter your password nearly every time you pick up the phone – but you have a solution: by updating your configuration profile you can alter this setting so it lasts between 1-15 minutes.
How to change screen lock
Once your lock screen is activated, only entering your passcode can turn it off. In order to unlock an iPhone, two PIN codes must be entered twice; any misentry results in automatic data and app deletion and will invalidate settings and personalizations. You may change or leave unchanged your PIN number; Preference Restrictions allow you to lock Screen Time settings by restricting which options can be changed – you’ll find these in Apple Menu > System Settings > Content & Privacy > Screen Time.
If you don’t own an iPhone, setting a PIN lock may help protect your personal data and apps from unauthorized access. Parents or guardians of children using Screen Time can add an extra layer of protection for their kids’ data and apps.
Siri’s loose lips may expose sensitive information stored on a locked iPhone, and a recent security bug makes this even more of a reason to keep her away from the lock screen. Israeli security researcher Dany Lisiansky discovered a glitch that allows anyone bypassing the lock screen to gain access to calling applications, contacts and voicemail. To test if you’re vulnerable, call with Siri while your iPhone is locked and wait for its ringtone – when that occurs you’ll know you have activated this bug when the keyboard appears and Siri announces your password – an easy way of testing yourself to see if this problem exists!