Have An Usang IPhone? Just Throw It Away!, This Is What A Technology Expert Says

IPhone 6, prone to malware attacks (photo: x @Edgestores)

JAKARTA - If you have an iPhone that is seven years old or older, you could be at risk of cyberattacks. Security experts warn that smartphones produced from 2008 to 2014 no longer get software updates support protecting users from malware and other exploits.

The iPhone model that is currently not supported includes the original model up to the iPhone 6 Plus. However, almost every year new models are added to this list. For example, Apple says the latest iPhone 15 family will join the outdated list by 2030.

This warning comes as the iPhone from series 3 to 6 Plus no longer supports the latest operating system that includes new security updates, making them vulnerable to hackers.

"The old iPhone is still circulating and once a vulnerability is found, it can be exploited quickly by attackers and targeted at anyone with a device that doesn't get an update," said Jake Moore, a global cybersecurity adviser at software company ESE, quoted by VOI from Forbes.

Moore even advised users to throw away their devices. "If people are using iPhones that don't get patches - even though it's annoying - they should consider replacing them with newer and safer devices," Moore said.

An iPhone is considered "obtrusive" after reaching seven years since Apple stopped selling it. The latest model to join this list is the iPhone 6 Plus in April, which debuted in 2014.

For those who still use the iPhone 6 Plus, if it breaks, you will find it difficult to fix it because apart from making the device obsolete, Apple also stopped producing spare parts for the smartphone.

News that the iPhone 6 Plus is becoming obsolete comes as Apple prepares to introduce an iOS 18 update this fall. The outdated list also includes models in the iPhone 3, iPhone 4, and iPhone 5 families.

Apple's customer service site also explains that "service providers cannot order spare parts for outdated products," which experts say, may be a good idea to throw away their devices.

New updates generally encourage Apple users to switch from old phones that can't support software updates, which indirectly make their data vulnerable to cybercriminals.

Moore said that hackers usually don't target older iPhone models because most people have a newer version. However, an Apple expert said last year that 250 million iOS users had not updated their iPhones in the last four years.