Apple Seeds Third Public Beta of iOS 17.3 With Stolen Device Protection

Apple today seeded the third betas of upcoming iOS 17.3 and iPadOS 17.3 updates to public beta testers, allowing non-developers to test the software ahead of its release. The second public iOS 17.3 and iPadOS 17.3 betas come almost a month after Apple released the first betas. Note that while Apple is calling these the third betas of iOS 17.3 and iPadOS 17.3, there was technically never a second public beta. Apple had to pull the second developer betas of iOS 17.3 and iPadOS 17.3, and opted to go straight to the third beta rather than releasing an updated public beta version.

iOS 17
Public beta testers can get the beta by opening up the Settings app, going to the Software Update section, tapping on the "Beta Updates" option, and toggling on the iOS 17 or iPadOS 17 Public Beta. Signing up on Apple's beta testing website is required.

iOS 17.3 includes Stolen Device Protection, a feature that offers an extra layer of security in case your iPhone is stolen and the thief also obtains your passcode. With this turned on, Face ID or Touch ID authentication is required for viewing iCloud Keychain passwords, turning off Lost Mode, erasing an ‌iPhone‌'s contents, using saved payment methods in Safari, and more. There is no passcode entry option should ‌Face ID‌ or ‌Touch ID‌ fail.

Certain actions, such as changing an Apple ID password, updating a device passcode, turning off Find My, and removing ‌Face ID‌ require authentication and also a one-hour security delay.

The update also adds collaborative Apple Music playlists, a feature that lets Apple Music subscribers build playlists with friends, family members, and others who share their musical tastes. Any playlist can be turned into a collaborative playlist by tapping on the person-shaped icon and sharing the link.

Those who want to try it out in iOS 17.3 can click on the MacRumors playlist link to try adding a song.

We are expecting iOS 17.3 and iPadOS 17.3 to be released sometime in January.

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Top Rated Comments

srbNYC Avatar
15 months ago
Better wait for 27.4
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
zorinlynx Avatar
15 months ago

The stolen device protection should’ve come with iOS 17 last fall. WSJ has been reporting on stolen devices and people getting locked out of their Apple accounts in spring of 2023 and it’s asinine they’re only addressing it now.
Apple tends to take extra time to make sure things are implemented well, instead of just diving into a quick solution. Frankly I prefer it that way when it's for stuff as important as device and account security.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Realityck Avatar
15 months ago
For all the jokes about the beta 2 issue with a few devices, beta 3 installed perfectly OTA.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Reeneman Avatar
15 months ago

I'm still waiting till 17.3.1 is released. This beta cycle for 17.3 has all sorts of "gotcha's". Make sure you have a backup peeps'
lol. Better wait for 17.3.2 will be even more polished!
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Tranel Avatar
15 months ago
On my iPhone 15 pro and my old iPad iOS/PadOS 17 is working very stable and without any issues since the beginning. Together with the perfect macOS 14 it is really a pleasure. Good work Apple!
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
theboyfrombonao Avatar
15 months ago
They better add a feature on the stolen device protection, that after multiple attempts the front camera will snap a picture and send it to the phone's owner's email account on another device
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)