iPhones repaired by third parties prone to Error 53
06 Feb 2016
Users who had their iPhones 6 and 6s repaired by a third party (ie not by Apple), and which had not been upgraded to the latest iOS9 version might come across display Error 53 alert, which simply meant their phone had gone dead for keeps.
There had been reports of devices having been repaired months earlier that had been working fine, before the message popped on the display, following which the device was disabled, after the phone was connected to a computer to perform a software update.
Error 53 is linked to iPhones or iPads with the Touch ID technology, but it seemed to be peculiar only to phones repaired by a third-party and when the devices' operating system had been upgraded to the latest iOS 9 version.
The error had till date been reported by iPhone 6 and 6Plus owners, the model of the iPhone released in 2014.
However, the same fingerprint security technology was used in the iPhone 5s that was present in iPhone 6s and 6s Plus models. Also, the Touch ID technology was used on the iPad Pro, the iPad Air 2 and the iPad mini 4.
According to Slate, the later model iOS phones had special security codes that needed to be reset if the physical link between the Touch ID and the motherboard was disconnected.
According to some commentators, the issue was mainly related to the repair of the fingerprint scanner which was embedded in the home button of the phone.
It also pertained to screen damage as the home button got removed when a screen was replaced.
Further, Apple also warned its customers that their phones could be rendered inoperable if they got it repaired from a non-Apple-authorised party.
The problem occured when during repair a party had either changed the home button or the cable.
