Everyone makes this same comment on each of these threads, but it's important to remember this only works if you have some sort of advance warning. If you have the iPhone in your hand and there is a loaded gun pointed at your head telling you not to move, you probably won't want to move.
replySerious question. If I am re-entering the US after traveling abroad, can customs legally ask me to turn the phone back on and/or seize my phone? I am a US citizen.
replyOut of habit, I keep my phone off during the flight and turn it on after clearing customs.
my understanding is that they can hold you for a couple days without charges for your insubordination but as a citizen they have to let you back into the country or officially arrest you, try to get an actual warrant, etc.
replythey can just break the law
replyIf you are a US citizen, you legally cannot be denied re-entry into the country for any reason, including not unlocking your phone. They can make it really annoying and detain you for a while, though.
replyThey can also practically keep your phone indefinitely.
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replyDid you know that on most models of iPhone, saying "Hey Siri, who's iPhone is this?" will disable biometric authentication until the passcode is entered?
replyhm. didn't work on my 17 pro :(
might be due to a setting i have.
replyThey disabled that in like iOS 18.
replyOr squeeze the power and volume buttons for a couple of seconds. It’s good to practice both these gestures so that they become reflex, rather than trying to remember them when they’re needed.
replySad, neither of those works on Android. Pressing the power button activates the emergency call screen with a countdown to call emergency services, and power + volume either just takes a screenshot or enables vibrations/haptics depending on which volume button you press.
replyDid you check your phone settings? Mine has an option to add it to the power menu, so you get to it by whichever method you use to do that (which itself is sad that phones are starting to differ in what the power key does).
replyOn Pixel phones, Power + Volume Up retrieves a menu where you can select "Lockdown".
replyNot on my Pixel phone, that just sets it to vibrate instead of ring. Holding down the power button retrieves a menu where you can select "Lockdown".
replyOn my 9 you get a setting to choose if holding Power gets you the power menu or activates the assistant (I think it defaulted to assistant? I have it set to the power menu because I don't really ever use the assistant.)
replyYes, that was the default for me, but I changed it in settings.
replyOh wow, just going into the "should I shutdown" menu also goes into pre-boot lock state? I didn't know that.
replyIt doesn't reenter a BFU state, but it requires a passcode for the next unlock.
replyIt's close enough, because (most of) the encryption keys are wiped from memory every time the device is locked, and this action makes the secure enclave require PIN authentication to release them again.
reply> It's close enough
replyNot really, because tools like Cellbrite are more limited with BFU, hence the manual informing LEO to keep (locked) devices charged, amd the countermeasures being iOS forcefully rebooting devices that have been locked for too long.
There is a way now to force BFU from a phone that is turned on, I can't remember the sequence
replyIt’s called restarting the phone.
replyEh? BFU ("before first unlock") is, by definition, the state that a phone is in when it is turned on. There's no need to "force" it.
replyIf you mean forcing an iOS device out of BFU, that's impossible. The device's storage is encrypted using a key derived from the user's passcode. That key is only available once the user has unlocked the device once, using their passcode.
Alternately, hold the power button and either volume button together for a few seconds.
replyThis is the third person advocating button squeezing, as a reminder: IF a gun is on you the jig is up, you can be shot for resisting or reaching for a potential weapon. Wireless detonators do exist, don't f around please.
replyIn case anyone is wondering: In newer versions of MacOS, the user must log out to require a password. Locking screen no longer requires password if Touch ID is enabled.
replyIs that actually true? I'm fairly confident my work Mac requires a password if it's idle more than a few days (typically over the weekend).
replyShift+Option+Command+Q is your fastest route there, but unsaved work will block.
replySettings -> lock screen -> “Require password after screen saver begins or display is turned off”
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