How to Fix the Text Message iPhone Glitch
There is an iPhone glitch going around that pranksters are exploiting to make your device restart just by sending you a text message. If a specific string of text is received over Messages, Twitter DM, or some other apps, it may cause your phone to crash and restart. This bug is being called the “effective power glitch” by some because the string of text begins with these words. The problem seems to be centered on how Notification Center handles certain Unicode characters.
A screenshot of the message that causes the glitch
We’ll refrain from posting the exact string of characters that causes the glitch in text form here – but if you have fallen victim to the prank, here is how to fix it.
Reddit user “TheSecondAccountYeah” found a solution:
To stop you iPhone from resetting, you have to send a new message to each person or group that sent you the string of text that causes the glitch. Unfortunately the messages app crashes when you open it, making this more difficult than it sounds. Two easy ways around the problem are:
- Open the photos app and send a picture to that contact/group
- Send the contact/group a message using Siri
If you’re worried about falling victim to this iPhone glitch prank, a suggested preventative measure is to turn off notifications for Messages (Setting>Notifications>Messages) – although it’s not clear if this solves the issue entirely.
To see some more discussion about the issue, take a look at this thread on Reddit.
