iPhone owners switching from their iPhone to another device often encounter an issue with lost messages that are incorrectly delivered to their inactive iPhone, instead of their new phone. This issue is a long-standing problem that was recently made worse by a server glitch, claims Apple in a statement provided to Re/code.
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Apple's iMessage service allows iPhone owners to exchange messages using Apple's iMessage servers, instead of the carrier's text messaging network. The system relies on the accurate identification of the originating and recipient devices as iPhones. When this identification fails, the message delivery system falls apart.
The lost messages problem arises when an iPhone owner switches to another smartphone, such as an Android device, and keeps their existing number. In select cases, Apple's iMessage service continues to recognize the phone number as being attached to an iPhone, instead of the new Android device. This recognition mistake causes a problem with messaging as Apple's iMessaging servers will route the message as an iMessage instead of converting it to a standard text message.
Apple advises iPhone owners to turn off iMessage on their phone and uncheck the number in other iMessage-compatible devices attached their iCloud account before switching devices. This method doesn't always remove the phone number from Apple's iMessage server, forcing former iPhone owners to contact Apple to remove them from the iMessage system manually. A recent server glitch has disabled this manual removal, leaving Apple support representatives temporarily unable to fix this problem for some customers.
“We recently fixed a server-side iMessage bug which was causing an issue for some users, and we have an additional bug fix in a future software update,” Apple told Re/code in a statement. “For users still experiencing an issue, please contact AppleCare.”
Apple has not provided a time-frame for the release of this software update. Until a fix is in place, customers will have to contact AppleCare for further guidance on how to handle this troublesome issue.
Top Rated Comments
Another fanboy... This is a problem for iPhone users too... Oh and Google is now the most valuable company so there's that.
The issue isn't 'helping the enemy' or any other sort of brain washed rhetoric. The issue is they are holding something valuable that you own for ransom essentially. This bug hijacks your phone number and renders you unreachable to millions of people including friends, family, and work. Fixing a bug in your system isn't going the extra mile by ANY means, it's going the distance you should have gone in the first place before releasing software without documentation and advertising it's potential side affects or pitfalls.
Imagine Comcast holding internet access for you against your will if you tried to go to a competitor or if you moved to a part of the country where Comcast doesn't service... Since you were once a Comcast customer they wouldn't allow you to get internet through anyone else even if Comcast wasn't an option. Would this be allowed? Condoned? Defended by anyone but the most ridiculous Comcast advocate?
Common sense mate... common sense. It's a bug; it needs to be fixed regardless of who it affects.
It also affects the Apple customers who can no longer send messages to their friends because they have changed phones. :rolleyes:
How they don't know? They perfectly know what phone number is being accessed by an iOS device
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Those are jokes, aren't?
Fanboyism at its finest... Surely Apple isn't capable of making a mistake!