New iOS 17.3 feature will keep a thief out of your iPhone and your banking apps،
Stolen Device Protection uses biometric tools to prevent thieves from accessing your iPhone
Actions that require Face ID or Touch ID when an iPhone is in an unusual location include viewing passwords stored on the device and wiping the phone. It will take up to one hour to create a new Apple ID password. After the time, Face ID or Touch ID will still be required to change the password. The delay essentially buys the owner time to report their phone stolen.
![Apple adds another layer of biometric protection to iPhone in iOS 17.3; Image Credit Beta Profiles – New iOS 17.3 Feature Will Keep Thieves From Accessing Your iPhone and Banking Apps](https://wikidollar.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/New-iOS-173-feature-will-keep-a-thief-out-of.jpg)
Apple adds another layer of biometric protection to iPhone in iOS 17.3; Image Credit Beta Profiles
Other actions that require biometric approval when Stolen Device Protection is enabled and an iPhone is away from the user's usual locations include requesting an Apple Card, turning off Lost Mode, and accessing and using payment methods stored in Safari. If Face ID or Touch ID fails and Device Theft Protection is enabled, the user cannot use their password to sign in.
- View/use passwords or passkeys saved in iCloud Keychain
- Request a new Apple Card
- Viewing an Apple Card virtual card
- Turn off Lost Mode
- Erasing all content and settings
- Perform certain Apple Cash and Savings actions in Wallet
- Use saved payment methods in Safari
- Use your iPhone to set up a new device
- Change your Apple ID password
- Updated some Apple ID account security settings, including adding or removing a trusted device, trusted phone number, recovery key, or recovery contact
- Change your iPhone password
- Adding or removing Face ID or Touch ID
- Turn off Find My
- Disable stolen device protection
Stolen Device Protection is supposed to prevent a scam that starts when someone befriends or spies on an iPhone user to get their password. Sometimes this is done by looking over the iPhone user's shoulder or asking to see a photo and watching the iPhone user unlock their handset using their passcode.
How to enable stolen device protection in the first developer beta of iOS 17.3
The thief then steals the iPhone, enters the stolen passcode, resets the Apple ID password, disables Find My, performs a factory reset, and sells the device. A working iPhone is worth more on the black market than a locked iPhone; the latter device is generally sold for spare parts. Alternatively, the thief could use the password to steal banking and other financial app passwords, email passwords, etc. which are stored in iCloud Keychain.
If Apple keeps the new feature in the final version of iOS 17.3, most iPhone users won't get this feature until early next year. If you installed the first developer beta of iOS 17.3, you can enable stolen device protection by going to Settings > Face ID and passcode > Protecting Stolen Devices.