1706025231
It’s never fun when your iPhone is stolen, even though Apple has all sorts of tools to protect you from theft. There are also ways to prevent your iPhone from being stolen. With iOS 17.3, Apple adds another important tool to prevent a thief from using your stolen iPhone to access your Apple ID settings and, for example, change your password. Read everything about iOS 17.3 and more here.
The latest iOS update is currently being rolled out. It may therefore take a while before the update is visible to you. Apple usually rolls out updates out of 7:00 p.m. Dutch time. There’s no point in reporting in the comments that you haven’t seen the update yet. See also our article on iOS installation problems.
iOS 17.3 and iPadOS 17.3 available
Starting with iOS 17.3, you will find the “Stolen Device Protection” feature on your iPhone. This feature prevents a thief who knows your iPhone’s passcode from changing your Apple ID password, for example. When you enable Stolen Device Protection, Face ID is always required for certain things, changing data, or adjusting settings. Your access code will then no longer be available as a backup if your face is not recognized.
This change applies to various settings when you enable theft feature. For example, you can no longer view passwords in iCloud Keychain, but you also can’t erase an iPhone or use the iPhone to set up another device without using Face ID. This prevents a thief from carrying out such actions that contain personal data. A security delay has even been set for some actions, so you still have to wait an hour after Face ID if you’re not at home. For example, change your Apple ID password.
You can find the function via Settings > Face ID/Touch ID and Passcode > Stolen Device Protection. You need to enable this in advance before your iPhone is stolen. In daily use, you hardly notice a difference when the function is activated.
But iOS 17.3 and iPadOS 17.3 offer more. The updates also add support for collaboration on Apple Music playlists. This feature was originally planned for iOS 17.2, but was slightly delayed. The feature lets you add songs to a playlist together, change the order, and even respond to the other person’s music tastes with an emoji.
The next new feature is AirPlay in hotel rooms, but this only makes sense if enough hotels support it.
Finally, you’ll find a new Black History Month wallpaper in iOS 17.3. This is matched by the new Black Unity 2024 Apple Watch band, which also includes a watch face added in watchOS 10.3. You can find out more about all the new features of iOS 17.3 in our separate article.
iOS 17.3 release notes
These are the iOS 17.3 English release notes that Apple released:
This update introduces additional security measures with stolen device protection. This release also includes a new Unity wallpaper celebrating Black history and culture in celebration of Black History Month, as well as other features, bug fixes, and security updates for your iPhone. Some features may not be available in all regions or on all Apple devices.
Protection against stolen devices
- Stolen Device Protection increases iPhone and Apple ID security by requiring Face ID or Touch ID to perform certain actions without passcode fallback
- The security delay requires Face ID or Touch ID, an hour of waiting, and then additional successful biometric authentication before sensitive operations such as changing the device passcode or Apple ID password can be performed
Lock screen
- The new Unity wallpaper celebrates Black history and culture in celebration of Black History Month
Music
- Collaborating on playlists lets you invite friends to join your playlist, and anyone can add, reorder, and remove songs
- Emoji reactions can be added to any song in a collaborative playlist
This update also includes the following improvements:
- AirPlay hotel support lets you stream content directly to your in-room TV in select hotels
- AppleCare & Warranty in Settings shows your insurance coverage for all devices signed in with your Apple ID
- Crash detection optimizations (all iPhone 14 and iPhone 15 models)
For information about the security content of Apple software updates, visit this website:
For iPadOS 17.3 these are the release notes:
This update introduces a new Unity wallpaper to celebrate Black history and culture in celebration of Black History Month. This release also includes improvements to Apple Music, as well as other features, bug fixes, and security updates for your iPad. Some features may not be available in all regions or on all Apple devices. For information about the security content of Apple software updates, visit this website:
Download iOS 17.3
To download iOS 17.3, do the following:
You can also perform the update via your computer. To do this, connect your iPhone or iPad to your Mac using a cable and open Finder (or iTunes in macOS Mojave or older). Windows users open iTunes. Click on your connected device and select Check for an update. The update will then be downloaded and installed on your device.
Have you used a trial version and no longer want to receive betas? Don’t forget to opt out of the beta program if you no longer want to run the beta.
Why don’t I see the update (yet)?
It may sometimes take a while before you see the update on your device. This is due to the fact that Apple rolls out these updates in phases. You can read about it in this article: This is why it takes longer for iOS updates to install automatically. If you still can’t update iOS after a while, check out our iOS installation problems article.
Please note: Keep answers on-topic, specific, and clear to others. Personal status updates about whether your download has started/successful do not add to the discussion. It may also take a little longer for the update to be visible. You don’t have to report this either. These comments will be deleted.
#features