Apple pledged Friday to update the software on the iPhone 12s in France to settle a dispute over radiation levels, but concerns in other European countries indicated it may have to take similar action elsewhere.
France this week suspended sales of iPhone 12 phones after tests showed radiation exposure limits were exceeded.
Apple disputed the findings, saying the iPhone 12 had been certified by multiple international bodies as compatible with global standards, but said Friday it would release a software update to accommodate testing methods used in France.
Researchers have conducted a large number of studies over the past twenty years to identify the health risks of mobile phones. According to the World Health Organization, no adverse health effects caused by this have been identified.
But France’s radiation warning, based on test results that differ from those in other countries, has raised concerns across Europe.
Belgium’s state secretary for digitalization said he had asked Apple to upgrade the iPhone 12 software in EU countries, even as he said that based on the Belgian regulator’s preliminary assessment, the device does not pose a risk to users.
Germany said it has contacted French authorities to find a European Union-wide solution, while Italy would ask Apple to upgrade the software on the iPhone 12s there, a government source in Rome said.
However, any request to Apple or individual decisions from Italian authorities will only come after the end of the French investigation, a second Italian government source said.
The Dutch Digital Infrastructure Authority said it was also conducting its own investigation, due to take place in two weeks, and that it was in contact with Apple as well as German and French authorities. The agency said it had received calls from concerned consumers.
The French government welcomed Apple’s software update, saying it would be tested quickly and should allow sales of the relatively old iPhone 12 model, launched in 2020, to resume.
“We will release a software update for users in France to address the protocol used by French regulators. We look forward to iPhone 12 remaining available in France,” Apple said in a statement.
“This is related to a specific testing protocol used by French regulators and is not a safety issue,” the report said.
Apple routinely provides software updates for its phones and computers, usually to fix a security issue. They can be targeted to a particular model or a region, and sometimes Apple releases such updates several times a month.
Testing limbs
France’s Agence Nationale des Frequences (ANFR) said on Tuesday that the iPhone 12’s Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) – a measure of the rate of radio frequency energy absorbed by the body by a device – was higher than legally permitted, which led to the suspension of the sale.
A change in French regulations in 2020 made it possible to test SAR on limbs (with a phone in hand) and on the head and body used elsewhere. In the French SAR limb tests, which the iPhone 12 failed, it is measured at a distance of 0mm, compared to a distance of 5mm for body tests.
Belgium’s Digital Minister, Mathieu Michel, said in a statement on Friday that while an assessment of the phone by the country’s BIPT regulator was still ongoing, initial results were “reassuring” and there was no need to to recall the phone. Belgium.
Still, he said he had contacted Apple and asked the company to “review its software updates in an identical manner across Europe.”
Denmark also moved to reassure owners of the phone, saying its safety authority would take no action on France’s findings and that it was not concerned about the radiation levels associated with using the iPhone 12 brings.
“Based on the available information, the Danish Health Authority’s conclusion is that you can continue to use your iPhone 12 without any concerns,” it said in an emailed statement.
Industry experts said there were no safety concerns because the legal limits, based on the risk of burns or heatstroke from the phone’s radiation, were well below the level at which scientists found evidence of harm.
“Ultimately, I suspect the whole incident will be quickly forgotten,” said Ben Wood, principal analyst at CCS Insight, emphasizing that the iPhone 12 is an old model.
Apple launched the iPhone 15 on Tuesday and the iPhone 12 cannot be purchased directly from Apple. However, it can be purchased from third parties who have stock or trade in old phones.
A bigger problem would have been a possible recall, which France had threatened if Apple had refused to perform a software update.
Apple’s revenues in Europe last year were about $95 billion (nearly Rs. 7,89,600 crore), making the region the largest after America. By some estimates, the company sold more than 50 million iPhones in Europe last year.
The American company does not divide its sales by country or model.
© Thomson Reuters 2023
