Whenever there’s a new operating system released for a smartphone, users get all excited about a sleek new look or increased capabilities. But just like all other releases before it, the fresh iOS 7 for iPhones has its share of issues. Namely, a pretty easy hack that handily sidesteps the security of your lock screen and grants anyone acesss to your apps, including email and social media.

The passcode is rendered ineffective by the bug, which was discovered by a 36-year-old living on the Canary Islands, reports CNET.

All you have to do is swipe up from the lock screen, which brings you to the new Control Center, and open the alarm clock app. From there you hold the phone’s sleep button down, but tap cancel instead of letting it power down and then double-tap the home button to access the multitasking screen.

Once you’re in there the phone is your oyster — jumping to the camera will allow you to share photos, which in turn gives you access to any apps you use to share them: email, Flickr, Facebook, Twitter, etc.

Apple says it’s aware of the issue, telling AllThingsD it’s aware of the flaw and will fix it — hopefully sooner rather than later.

“Apple takes user security very seriously,” said an Apple spokeswoman. “We are aware of this issue, and will deliver a fix in a future software update.”

Until then, you can fix it yourself by disabling access to Control Center on your devices lockscreen. Go to Settings > Control Center, look for “Access on Lock Screen” and toggle it off.

Apple promises to fix iOS 7 lock screen hack [CNET]
Yes, Apple Is Working on a Fix for the iOS 7 Lock Screen Hack [AllThingsD]

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