Apple iOS Update to Fix iPhone 12 Radiation Levels Approved by French Regulators

Apple has had its software update for iPhone 12 devices in France approved by regulators, after the country threatened to suspend sales of the phones earlier this month due to radiation levels (via Reuters).

purple iphone 12 and 12 mini
In early September, France ordered Apple to halt ‌‌iPhone‌‌ 12 sales and "fix" existing devices to bring them into electromagnetic radiation compliance with European standards. The increase in emitted electromagnetic radiation observed over time by regulators appears to have been the result of successive software updates issued by Apple, and was not present when the ‌‌iPhone‌‌ 12 was launched in 2020.

The ANFR ordered Apple to "remove the ‌‌‌iPhone‌‌ 12‌ from the French market from September 12 due to the model exceeding the limit" for electromagnetic absorption by the body. The agency also told Apple to recall every ‌‌‌iPhone‌‌ 12‌ it has ever sold in the country. Ministers later said that though the radiation level was above the accepted standard, it was not dangerous and people were safe to continue using the phones, local media reported.

Apple later said it would issue a software update for ‌iPhone‌ 12 users in France to address the radiation concerns. The French regulator ANFR responded by saying it would test the software update. If it made a difference to the electromagnetic waves the device emitted, ANFR said it would bring the model into compliance with European standards applied in France, and the marketing withdrawal order would be lifted.

Tag: France

Popular Stories

streaming black friday 2025

Black Friday Streaming Deals Include Big Savings on Disney+, Hulu, Apple TV, and More

Monday November 24, 2025 8:03 am PST by
We've been focusing on deals on physical products over the past few weeks, but Black Friday is also a great time of year to purchase a streaming membership. Some of the biggest services have great discounts for new and select returning members this week, including Disney+, Hulu, Paramount+, Peacock, and more. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a...
iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Adds These New Features to Your iPhone

Thursday November 20, 2025 10:50 am PST by
iOS 26.2 is currently in beta testing. The upcoming update includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, including a new Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics for Apple Music, and more. In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 26.2 will be released to all users in December, but it did not provide a specific release date. Keep reading...
iOS 26 on Three iPhones

iOS 27 Will Reportedly Have Two Key Upgrades

Sunday November 23, 2025 8:48 am PST by
iOS 27 will reportedly have two major elements: quality improvements and new AI features. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that iOS 27 will be similar to Mac OS X Snow Leopard, in the sense that Apple is focused on improving "quality and underlying performance" over adding new features. Gurman said there is one exception to this rule, though, as he expects...
maxresdefault

The MacRumors Show: iPhone 18 Pro Looks Like a Huge Upgrade

Friday November 21, 2025 9:10 am PST by
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we talk through all of the new features and improvements expected to come to next year's iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max models. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos Apple's next-generation iPhones are less than ten months away and we already have a good idea about what to expect based on corroborated leaks, rumors,...
General Black Friday Deals 25 Red

Apple Black Friday Deals Available Now on AirPods, iPads, Accessories, and More

Friday November 21, 2025 8:48 am PST by
We're only a few days away from Black Friday, which will take place on Friday, November 28 in 2025. As always, this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When...
Apple Shopping Event 2025

Apple Announces 2025 Black Friday Event, Here's What You Can Get

Thursday November 20, 2025 6:28 am PST by
Apple's annual four-day Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping event is returning on Friday, November 28 through Monday, December 1 in many countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Thailand, and others. During the shopping event, customers can get an Apple gift card with...
hikawa phone grip stand apple%402x

Apple Launches Second Limited-Edition iPhone Accessory in a Month

Friday November 21, 2025 3:53 am PST by
Apple has begun selling the Hikawa Phone Grip and Stand, a new limited-edition iPhone accessory designed with accessibility in mind. Designed by LA-based Bailey Hikawa to celebrate the 40th anniversary of accessibility at Apple, the grip uses magnets to securely snap onto any iPhone with MagSafe. Apple says it can be removed with ease, and doubles as a stand with two different viewing...
apple news banner

Apple News Loses CNN

Monday November 24, 2025 7:56 am PST by
American multinational news company CNN has abruptly pulled its content from Apple News, Semafor reports. CNN quietly removed its stories from Apple News over the weekend and there is no longer a feed from the network to subscribe to in the app. This effectively ends its distribution agreement with Apple while the two sides negotiate new terms. Discussions are apparently ongoing and CNN's...

Top Rated Comments

jonnysods Avatar
28 months ago
We call it “Low Emit”, and we think your cranium is going to love it.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Populus Avatar
28 months ago
Wait, wait… is this update is only available in France? So, people in other countries using their iPhone 12 will keep being exposed to higher levels? Unless the allowed radiation levels are abnormally low in France, I think this update should have been available to everyone else.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MathersMahmood Avatar
28 months ago
How does a software update fix radiation? Bit silly really. we may end up seeing performance throttling.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
FastLaneJB Avatar
28 months ago

How does a software update fix radiation? Bit silly really. we may end up seeing performance throttling.
They turn on the lower radiation feature flag ;)

Joking aside if this wasn't present at launch and was later found then at some point Apple's boosted the power of the radios probably to improve signal strength. That pushed them over the limit and now I guess they are going to dial it back down so French iPhone 12 users should expect worse signal.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jasonsmith_88 Avatar
28 months ago

How did this even get through? surely someone at Apple must have known this was coming and they could have pro-actively applied a software update and avoided all of this 'bad' publicity...

Despite the levels of radiation still being safe, there will be some people who will over react to this.
Apple probably didn’t believe that the French regulator would be so stupid as to measure the radiation from a closer distance (closer than the EU regulation specifies) while expecting the same amount of radiation. Of course, if you measure from a closer distance, you get a higher value. A child in kindergarten could predict the result of this basic science experiment. But the French doubled-down in their scaremongering campaign and I guess it would be worse for Apple if they don’t respond. But don’t be fooled. The iPhone is within spec according to all other EU nations, all other countries in the world, and independent testing. This is nothing more than the French government trying to drum up fear.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
LV426 Avatar
28 months ago

How does a software update fix radiation? Bit silly really. we may end up seeing performance throttling.
In this context, radiation means electromagnetic radiation (radio). The strength of the radio transmitter can be controlled by the operating system. If, over the years, the control mechanism has upped the strength of the radio output, I can't say I'm entirely surprised that it went unmissed.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)