After a recall threat: Apple updates iPhone 12 in France Hundreds of thousands suffer from digital barriers in Switzerland – that should change

Following the threat of a recall for the iPhone 12 in France, Apple will update the device’s software in the country. At the same time, the US company emphasized that the exceedance of limits for electromagnetic radiation set by a French regulatory agency was due to their “special testing protocol”.

The update must take into account the testing method and is not motivated by security problems, Apple announced on Friday. It is internationally recognized that the iPhone 12 meets all limit values.

The French authority Agence Nationale des Frequences (ANFR) ordered on Tuesday that devices of the three-year-old model must be removed from sales channels. If Apple does not correct the values ​​with an update “as soon as possible”, the devices in circulation in France would also have to be recalled, it was said.

The history

The ANFR had 141 telephones examined in a laboratory to determine how much electromagnetic radiation the body absorbed during operation. It turned out that the limit for direct physical contact – for example in the hand or in the pocket – was exceeded with the iPhone 12. Instead of the maximum permitted 4 watts per kilogram, this was 5.74 watts per kilogram.

However, the iPhone 12 met the limit of two watts per kilogram for radiation levels at a distance of five millimeters from the body, the ANFR writes. It applies to situations where a phone is carried in a jacket or bag, for example.

In Germany, a spokesperson for the Federal Network Agency said on Wednesday that the procedure in France had a guiding function for Europe as a whole. “If the process in France has progressed sufficiently, the Federal Network Agency would explore a process for the German market,” he said.

(sda/awp/dpa)