DON'T set your iPhone to 1 January 1970 or you'll break it

  • Published
iphoneImage source, Getty Images

Apple is warning 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.

Image source, Getty Images

Apple confirmed the issue on its website, and said an upcoming software update would provide a solution.

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.

Image source, apple.com

Restoring the smartphone through iTunes doesn't work and while removing the battery has been reported as a successful fix, getting it wrong could damage the phone even more and voids the warranty.

For more stories like this one you can now download the BBC Newsbeat app straight to your device. For iPhone go here. For Android go here.