U.S. to Investigate Apple Over iOS Updates That Slowed Some Older iPhones

According to Bloomberg, the U.S. Department of Justice and Securities and Exchange Commission are investigating Apple and its handling of software updates which slowed down some older iPhones, to prevent unexpected shutdowns:

The U.S. Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission are investigating whether Apple Inc. violated securities laws concerning its disclosures about a software update that slowed older iPhone models, according to people familiar with the matter.

Unnamed sources told the publication government agencies requested information from Apple, with the inquiry in its early stages, so it’s too soon to jump to any conclusions if enforcement will be required.

Apple apologized to customers back in December after it was discovered iOS updates slowed down some older iPhone models with aging batteries, in an effort to prevent unexpected shutdowns. The company lowered out of warranty battery replacements to $35 CAD from $99 CAD, as part of its apology.

An upcoming iOS 11.3 update will allow customers to disable CPU throttling and also provide more information on the health and status of batteries.

Earlier today, Bloomberg reported Apple would be delaying major features of iOS 12, to rather focus on performance and quality issues instead.