Apple has worked to make stolen iPhones less valuable to thieves through Activation Lock, a feature that’s part of Find My. With Find My enabled (Settings > [your name] > Find My), an iPhone can’t be erased and reused without having the password for the Apple Account associated with the phone. (This locking feature can also render Apple hardware intended for legitimate resale or donation unusable.)
You can make a robber’s job slightly harder on an iPhone 18 Pro or iPhone 18 Pro Max with a small inconvenience to yourself by disabling Control Center from the Lock screen without Face ID authentication. By preventing a thief’s access to Control Center, they can’t turn off Bluetooth, cellular, or Wi-Fi networking, meaning your iPhone will continue to broadcast its location.
Here’s how to prevent Control Center from being used from the Lock screen.
How to disable Control Center from the Lock screen
At a glance
- Time to complete: 3 minutes
1. Face ID & Passcode setting
Go to Settings > Face ID & Passcode.
2. Passcode
Enter your device passcode or password.
3. Turn off Control Center
Scroll down to Allow Access When Locked and flip the switch to disable Control Center.
Criminals don’t want to be tracked down, so, unable to disable networking, they will either power down the device or place it in a metal-lined bag to block all its wireless network signals. Powering down doesn’t fully help, as recent models of iPhone continue to transmit over Bluetooth using the Find My network even when “off” (as long as they have a charge). The thief will have to work in a shielded location or far from cell networks and other Apple users to try to crack your passcode or use more advanced techniques.
Disabling Control Center from the Lock screen doesn’t deter a theft, but someone may discard your iPhone 18 Pro Max (making it possible for you to find it) if they can’t immediately enable Airplane Mode when they realize the additional jeopardy they may be in.
You can still access Control Center on the Lock screen, but you’ll have to make sure you first perform a Face ID unlock.
