Apple Acknowledges iOS 6.1 Passcode Bug, Fix Coming in Future Software Update

passcode_lock_keypadFollowing today's significant publicity surrounding a bug in iOS 6.1 that allows users to bypass the iPhone's passcode lock to access the device's phone functions and contacts, Apple has issued a brief statement to AllThingsD acknowledging the issue and promising a fix for it.

Reached for comment, Apple said it is hard at work on a fix. “Apple takes user security very seriously” spokeswoman Trudy Muller told AllThingsD. “We are aware of this issue, and will deliver a fix in a future software update.”

The company did not provide a timeframe for the fix.

Apple issued a first developer beta of iOS 6.1.1 last week, but then delivered a public iOS 6.1.1 release only for the iPhone 4S earlier this week. We suspect that Apple rushed out the iPhone 4S bug fix update and that the original iOS 6.1.1 in developer testing will become iOS 6.1.2 as it proceeds through the development and testing process.

It seems reasonable to assume that Apple will have enough time to fold a fix for the passcode issue into this next release, but it is unknown when that update will be made available to the public.

Related Forum: iPhone

Popular Stories

iOS 26

15 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.2

Friday December 5, 2025 9:40 am PST by
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below. Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...
Intel Inside iPhone Feature

Apple's Return to Intel Rumored to Extend to iPhone

Friday December 5, 2025 10:08 am PST by
Intel is expected to begin supplying some Mac and iPad chips in a few years, and the latest rumor claims the partnership might extend to the iPhone. In a research note with investment firm GF Securities this week, obtained by MacRumors, analyst Jeff Pu said he and his colleagues "now expect" Intel to reach a supply deal with Apple for at least some non-pro iPhone chips starting in 2028....
ive and altman

Jony Ive's OpenAI Device Barred From Using 'io' Name

Friday December 5, 2025 6:22 am PST by
A U.S. appeals court has upheld a temporary restraining order that prevents OpenAI and Jony Ive's new hardware venture from using the name "io" for products similar to those planned by AI audio startup iyO, Bloomberg Law reports. iyO sued OpenAI earlier this year after the latter announced its partnership with Ive's new firm, arguing that OpenAI's planned "io" branding was too close to its...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

10 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Monday December 1, 2025 2:40 am PST by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
iPhone 14 Pro Dynamic Island

iPhone 18 Pro Leak Adds New Evidence for Under-Display Face ID

Monday December 8, 2025 4:54 am PST by
Apple is actively testing under-screen Face ID for next year's iPhone 18 Pro models using a special "spliced micro-transparent glass" window built into the display, claims a Chinese leaker. According to "Smart Pikachu," a Weibo account that has previously shared accurate supply-chain details on Chinese Android hardware, Apple is testing the special glass as a way to let the TrueDepth...
maxresdefault

iPhone Fold: Launch, Pricing, and What to Expect From Apple's Foldable

Monday December 1, 2025 3:00 am PST by
Apple is expected to launch a new foldable iPhone next year, based on multiple rumors and credible sources. The long-awaited device has been rumored for years now, but signs increasingly suggest that 2026 could indeed be the year that Apple releases its first foldable device. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Below, we've collated an updated set of key details that ...
Photos App Icon Liquid Glass

John Gruber Shares Scathing Commentary About Apple's Departing Software Design Chief

Thursday December 4, 2025 9:30 am PST by
In a statement shared with Bloomberg on Wednesday, Apple confirmed that its software design chief Alan Dye will be leaving. Apple said Dye will be succeeded by Stephen Lemay, who has been a software designer at the company since 1999. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that Dye will lead a new creative studio within the company's AR/VR division Reality Labs. On his blog Daring Fireball,...
Johny Srouji

Apple Chip Chief Johny Srouji Could Be Next to Go as Exodus Continues

Sunday December 7, 2025 10:41 am PST by
Apple's senior vice president of hardware technologies Johny Srouji could be the next leading executive to leave the company amid an alarming exodus of leading employees, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports. Srouji apparently recently told CEO Tim Cook that he is "seriously considering leaving" in the near future. He intends to join another company if he departs. Srouji leads Apple's chip design ...
Apple John Ternus 2019

Will John Ternus Really Be Apple's Next CEO?

Friday December 5, 2025 9:01 am PST by
There is uncertainty about Apple's head of hardware engineering John Ternus succeeding Tim Cook as CEO, The Information reports. Some former Apple executives apparently hope that a new "dark-horse" candidate will emerge. Ternus is considered to be the most likely candidate to succeed Cook as CEO. The report notes that he is more likely to become CEO than software head chief Craig Federighi, ...
ios 18 to ios 26 upgrade

Apple Pushes iPhone Users Still on iOS 18 to Upgrade to iOS 26

Tuesday December 2, 2025 11:09 am PST by
Apple is encouraging iPhone users who are still running iOS 18 to upgrade to iOS 26 by making the iOS 26 software upgrade option more prominent. Since iOS 26 launched in September, it has been displayed as an optional upgrade at the bottom of the Software Update interface in the Settings app. iOS 18 has been the default operating system option, and users running iOS 18 have seen iOS 18...

Top Rated Comments

haruhiko Avatar
167 months ago
And the faithful still insists "it just works." This is how you know when you're a fanboy. When you have patience/understanding and put up with issues after issue (Battery Drain, Exchange Sync, Bypass Security Code, etc...) all the while bad mouthing another OS if it had the same issues. And running back to iOS claiming it just works, and never has issues.
Face it, iOS is just like any other OS. It's not perfect.

It just works =/= it is perfect. :D
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TMar Avatar
167 months ago
Which bugs are you referring to? I haven't had any problems with 6.1.

This is a security flaw. A minor one at that since thieves are rarely stealing smartphones for the contact lists.

"I'm not having any issues so nobody is having issues".

3g issues, wifi issues, exchange issues, lockscreen bypass issue and several others that elude me at the moment.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SpyderBite Avatar
167 months ago
why so many bugs with the 6.1, not good apple.

Which bugs are you referring to? I haven't had any problems with 6.1.

This is a security flaw. A minor one at that since thieves are rarely stealing smartphones for the contact lists.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Tankmaze Avatar
167 months ago
why so many bugs with the 6.1, not good apple.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nepalisherpa Avatar
167 months ago
6.1 happened after so many months of beta and it is already plagued with so many bugs: 4S' bug, exchange bug, and this loophole. Don't know if they rushed or goofed up!
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BC2009 Avatar
167 months ago
The way you have to jump through so many hoops to activate this security hole makes it look more like an "easter egg" or "backdoor" than a bug.

How on earth did anybody figure this out? The steps involved are astounding and they are hardly anything that you would stumble upon.

This totally seems like a backdoor coded into the phone by some disgruntled developer at Apple.

Oddly, the only thing this thing will let you access is the phone app -- not the rest of the phone. While that is bad, it is not nearly as bad as letting somebody launch eBay or Amazon with your saved password (assuming you save your password in those apps) and then start buying things.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)