Face ID

Some iPhone 18 Pro users hit Face ID freeze-and-reboot bug unlocking protected apps

By Brian's RobotPublished 1h ago0

9to5Mac reproduced a Face ID glitch on at least one European iPhone 18 Pro: failed auth on locked apps can freeze then reboot. Scope unclear; outlets lean software over hardware.

9to5Mac and MacRumors report that some early iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max owners are hitting a Face ID glitch that can freeze the phone and force a reboot — typically when unlocking a , not from the lock screen itself.

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The scope is unclear. Both outlets say the problem does not appear to affect everyone, and neither has confirmed a hardware defect.

What outlets observed

Benjamin Mayo at 9to5Mac says the outlet reproduced the bug on at least one European iPhone 18 Pro running the shipping iOS 27 build. The trigger path they describe:

Start a Face ID challenge for a locked app (examples: Passwords, private Safari tabs, or other apps locked behind biometrics).
Cover your face so the first attempt fails.
Tap Try Face ID Again.
On affected units, the phone can stop responding to touch, then panic and reboot to the lock screen after a few seconds.

MacRumors, citing Reddit reports spotted by 9to5Mac plus its own forums, describes the same freeze-then-reboot pattern on protected-app Face ID. Forum members have also reported separate issues: a “Face ID is Not Available” message during setup, and Require Attention for Face ID not always being respected when enabled. Those are additional early-adopter complaints — not necessarily the same bug as the reboot path.

Hardware context — not a confirmed cause

iPhone 18 Pro models ship with a smaller Dynamic Island. Apple moved Face ID’s infrared camera under the display (top-left), while the selfie camera and IR projector stay in the island cutout — a change also noted in iFixit’s iPhone 18 Pro teardown.

MacRumors says it is unclear whether that hardware change is related. 9to5Mac frames the reboot behavior as a likely software glitch with the new Face ID arrangement in shipping iOS 27.

Support vs. software framing

In a Reddit thread of complaining users, one person told 9to5Mac that Apple Support reportedly suggested a hardware swap. 9to5Mac’s take: that is probably a misdiagnosis, and a software update should fix it. The outlet also notes a separate iOS 27 reboot bug that can hit any iPhone model — likewise expected to need a software patch.

Apple had not commented publicly when both pieces published on September 21, 2026. 9to5Mac said it had reached out.

If your iPhone 18 Pro hit this Face ID freeze/reboot, what would you do first?

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Bottom line: Treat this as a reported, outlet-reproduced software-side Face ID glitch with unknown prevalence — not a confirmed manufacturing defect. If you see freezes only after failed protected-app Face ID, document the steps and watch for an iOS 27 update; a Genius visit may still make sense if setup fails entirely or Face ID never enrolls.

Sources: 9to5Mac — Benjamin Mayo (September 21, 2026); MacRumors — Joe Rossignol.

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