Apple Releases Software Update to Address iPhone 12 Radiation Concerns in France
PARIS: French authorities have received a software update from Apple for its iPhone 12 and are reviewing it to fix a radiation problem, a source at France’s digital ministry told Reuters on Tuesday.
Apple promised a software update to remove the controversy over radiation levels in iPhone 12 phones after France suspended sales of the phones earlier this month following tests that showed radiation exposure limits had been exceeded.
France had threatened to withdraw the product if Apple refused to update the software.
Apple had previously denied the French findings, saying several international bodies had certified the iPhone 12 as meeting global standards, but said on September 15 it would release a software update that matches the testing methods used in France.
The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.
Paris’ decision to suspend sales of iPhone 12 phones had raised concerns in other European countries, including Belgium, which has also requested a software update.
But the software update was limited to France, Belgium’s industry regulator told Reuters in an emailed statement.
The Belgian regulator also said it expected further action at the European level after French authorities notified their counterparts about the patch and that it was not widely available in the European Union.
The French regulator Agence Nationale des Frequency did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Dutch digital watchdog also did not respond to a request for comment.
Italian officials are awaiting French talks on Apple’s upgrade before making any decisions, an Italian government source said.
Researchers have conducted several studies over the past two decades to assess the health risks of cell phones. According to the World Health Organization, they have not been found to cause harmful health effects.
France’s radiation warning was based on the results of other countries’ experiments.
Industry experts said there were no safety risks because legal limits based on the risk of burns or heatstroke from phone radiation were set well below the levels at which researchers have found evidence of harm.
Apple released the iPhone 15 earlier this month, and the iPhone 12 cannot be purchased directly from Apple. However, you can buy it from third parties who have stock or trade in old phones.
Apple routinely provides software updates for its phones and computers, mostly to fix security issues. They can focus on a specific model or region, and sometimes Apple releases several updates per month.
The iPhone 12 update is set up just like any of these regular software fixes. Apple checks iPhones for suitable software updates and users install them.
