Concerned about the security of my iPhone, I went to activate the “Stolen Device Protection” feature. However, when I tried activating this security feature, I got an alert on my iPhone saying that it can’t be enabled unless … This additional requirement kind of forced me to write a short piece and explain the hidden reason. Read on to figure out the exact reason why this issue crops up and fix it.
Here’s Why You Are Unable to Activate “Stolen Device Protection” on Your iPhone
As to why this problem occurs in the very first place, it is thanks to “Find My” – Apple’s noted device tracking feature. Yeah, you read that right! This issue raises its head due to the Find My feature.
In order to use the “ Stolen Device Protection”, you must have the Find My iPhone enabled. If it is disabled, you won’t be allowed to bring it into action. While this correlation might seem pretty obvious for folks who have gone into the details of “SDP”, I suspect it could turn out to be a huge headache for an average joe.
Enable Find My on Your iPhone
1. To get started, launch the Settings app on your iPhone.
2. In the Settings menu, hit the Apple ID banner at the top.
3. Now, choose Find My to proceed.
4. After that, select Find My iPhone.
5. Finally, ensure that the toggle next to Find My iPhone is enabled.
Here, you should see a couple of Find My-related features.
- Find My Network: When enabled, it can let you locate your iPhone even when the device is offline, in the power reserve mode, and after power off.
- Send Last Location: Automatically send the location of this iPhone to Apple when the battery is critically low on the device.
Turn ON Stolen Device Protection
After you have successfully turned on the device tracking feature, you will be able to enable the Stolen Device Protection on your iPhone.
- On your iOS device, go to the Settings app.
- In the Settings menu, scroll down and choose Face ID & Passcode or Touch ID & Passcode.
- Now, select “Stolen Device Protection” and make sure that it’s turned on.
For folks who are unaware, Stolen Device Protection works as an extra layer of defense for your iPhone. It puts several sensitive settings and features behind a security shield to prevent unauthorized access/tweaking. Moreover, it also imposes a security delay of one hour so that you can secure your device or put it in lost mode before a thief can try to make critical changes.
Read more: A Quick Look at the Best iOS 18 Accessibility Features (Video)
