Late last year, Apple confirmed that it is intentionally slowing down phones with older batteries to prevent performance issues. This has led to a major backlash from all around the world and Apple even issued an apology and offered battery replacements at reduced prices but that caused problems of its own with batteries exploding.
According to a new report from Bloomberg, Apple is now facing a new investigation from both the US Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission for slowing down phones intentionally. The investigation is being carried out to determine whether or not the company has violated securities laws with its software updates.
This is the latest news in the string of inquiries Apple is facing due to the software updates. Planned obsolescence is illegal in France and the company is facing a criminal probe there. Italy’s antitrust organization is also investigating the issue. In addition to these, Apple is facing multiple class action lawsuits. The investigation by the US government is still in the early phases right now and it is unclear what it will uncover.
The next major update to the iPhone’s operating system iOS 11.3 will have an option for the users to opt out of the slowed-down speeds. But this comes at the risk of increasing random device reboots. Apple cannot seem to get out of the ditch it has fallen in once it announced the slowing down of phones and nobody knows when the negative attention surrounding the tech giants will end.