Effective power text: Apple releases workaround for text that crashes iPhone, still working on fix

A full solution to the problem is coming in a software update, Apple says

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Apple has released an official workaround for the “effective power” iPhone bug, advising how to bring an iPhone back to life if it is struck by the problem.

The bug brings iPhones — as well as other Apple devices — to a crashing halt, making them restart and rendering them unusable. The company hasn’t yet provided a fix to stop it happening, but says that one is coming in a software update, and until then has laid out ways to fix the problem if it happens.

Apple recommends asking Siri to “read unread messages”. As they are read out, users will be able to reply to the problem message — doing so to say anything should make the Messages app useable again. Then users should head back to the message and delete either the entire thread or just the offending text.

The very short support article, titled “If Messages quits unexpectedly after you get a text with a specific string of characters”, was uploaded yesterday.

Apple’s chosen way of getting round the problem is just one of a number of ways of re-setting the phone. Users can do a similar trick using the Photos app to send a picture to themselves, for instance.