Apple on its website warned iPhone users not to fall for an internet hoax that leaves handsets useless and irreparable.
A fake advertisement claims that changing the date on your iPhone to 1 January 1970 will give you a retro Apple design - it doesn't.
And the date change will cause your phone to become permanently stuck while rebooting if it's switched off or runs out of battery.
The bug affects the likes of the iPad Air, Mini 2 and any iPhone 5s onwards.
The glitch was discovered last week, but a fake photo has been circulating on social media encouraging people to switch the date on iPhones 5s and upwards.
Users were meant to be able to discover an Easter egg in the form of a 1970s-style multicoloured Apple logo and design.
Unfortunately, going retro on your iPhone won't change the design.
Instead, when the phone is turned off and turned on again, it refuses to reboot, displaying the Apple home screen and going no further.
Incidentally, Apple wasn't even around in 1970. It was founded six years after that.
Any iOS device with a 64 bit processor will be affected.
So the iPhone 5s, 6, 6 Plus, 6s and 6s Plus, the iPad Air 2, the iPad Mini 3 and 4, and the sixth-generation iPod Touch.
Apple confirmed the issue on its website, and said an upcoming software update will prevent this issue from affecting iOS devices. It also requested its users to contact Apple Support in case they already have the issue.
If you changed the date to May 1970 or earlier and can’t restart your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch
Taking the device to an Apple store and getting a new one seems to be the only answer for iPhone users who have fallen victim to the hoax at the moment.
Meanwhile a YouTuber Tom Scott, explains why an error occurs on setting date to 1/1/1970. According to Scott this date is displayed as one single integer on your iPhone and when a user sets the date to Jan. 1, 1970, that integer is set to zero. In the video, Scott explains that software designers at Apple likely did this to prevent a bug.
Youtube video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVI87HzfskQ
