This short line of code can force the restart of your iPhone or iPad

Image: lili sams / mashable

The latest iOS hacking will not steal your data, but it will bother you.

Fifteen lines of short code on a web page can restart your iPhone or iPad. Otherwise, visiting a Mac may cause the Safari window to crash.

As reported by TechCrunch, this exploit can easily be transmitted and sent to unsuspecting iOS users. As it is a short code snippet, it can hide on almost any webpage. It will reboot your device by activating a security system built into iOS.

Image: screenshot of jake krol Mashable / github

The code tries to use all available resources, which causes a kernel panic. In response, the iPhone will shut down and then restart to prevent any damage.

Fortunately, that's all the code does. There is nothing really malicious about it. It can not steal your data, access your passwords or view information about your device.

Correct warning, clicking the second link in the tweet above will result in a reboot. I've tested this feat on an iPhone X equipped with the latest version of iOS 12 beta and a 10.5 inch iPad Pro running in 11.4.1. – both devices are off and a few seconds later, the Apple logo appeared on reboot.

For the moment, this could be a fun way to joke a friend or the last means used by hackers to hunt down iPhone users. Be wary of incoming links from unsuspecting sources, and if your phone goes out after this code, just know that it will not steal data. In any case, it can give you a moment of loneliness when it disconnects you from the world still connected.

The fingers crossed that iOS teams at Apple are working quickly to solve this problem.