The NGO Phonegate Alert is today publishing its analysis of the iPhone 12 test report [1], obtained after a three-and-a-half-year legal battle with the French National Frequency Agency (ANFR). Our conclusions raise serious questions regarding the interrelationships between Apple and the telecoms regulator during the testing phases and show that the very validity of the official oversight of the iPhone 12 is in doubt.
When the ANFR Authorizes an Initial iOS Change Mid-Testing
Our analysis of the report reveals procedural anomalies that have, until now, been completely overlooked. An iPhone 12, purchased from a retail store in November 2021 by a sworn ANFR inspector, had its operating system modified in May 2022 (upgrading from iOS 14.7.1 to iOS 15.5) during the official test (see photos extracted from the test reports below).
Consequently, the measurement of the Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) for “limbs” on the iPhone 12 took 35 times longer (144 days) than the “trunk” SAR test in December 2021 (4 days). The laboratory, Cetecom advanced, made no specific observations regarding this delay.
For the NGO, this situation raises a fundamental legal question:
“Can an iPhone 12 whose software (iOS) is modified during testing still be considered the same product sampled in-store, and therefore the same one purchased by consumers since its market launch in 2020?”
Testing Without Apple Delivering Software “Kill Switches”
Upon reading the report, we can also confirm that during this testing period, Apple did not provide the telecoms regulator with the “kill switches” for its three limiting softwares (proximity sensors, motion sensors, and time averaging), as has been required since 2019. Yet, these “proprietary tools” from Apple are capable of interfering during tests with the device’s power management, whether for trunk or limb SAR measurements.
This situation directly echoes the European Commission’s Implementing Decision [2] of August 2025, which warns against the use of “proprietary” technical tools belonging to Apple that prevent any independent assessment of SAR. The opacity of these power regulation algorithms (so-called “limiter” software) makes it impossible to guarantee that devices respect health thresholds under real-use conditions.
A Software Update for the iPhone 12 Using a New iOS Change
The analysis of the September 2023 test report [3]—the very one that allowed the iPhone 12 to be returned to the market—also reveals the behind-the-scenes “abdication” of the telecoms regulator in the face of the Californian giant. To obtain the green light from authorities, Apple agreed to provide the ANFR with two of the three deactivation keys for its regulation algorithms (motion sensor and time averaging). However, the manufacturer kept the most critical key secret with the approval of the authorities: the proximity sensor (Body Detect).
By agreeing to re-test the device under a new OS (iOS 17.1 incorporating Modem Firmware 4.06.02) without access to all human body detection parameters, the ANFR found itself unable to verify whether the phone actually reduces its power when near the user or if it merely simulates compliance during tests.
This “blind” testing, conducted under three different versions of iOS, leaves the regulator entirely dependent on Apple’s algorithms, to the detriment of truly reliable and independent verification.
A “Delayed” Recall: 14 Months of Commercial Reprieve for Apple
The ANFR waited until September 2023 to publicly announce the temporary withdrawal of the iPhone 12 [4] and to inform the Commission and other member states [5], a full 14 months after the confirmation of its regulatory non-compliance (July 2022). This timing is a disturbing coincidence: the withdrawal announcement occurred at the exact moment the iPhone 12 was reaching the end of its sales cycle.
This delay allowed Apple to sell off its global stocks of the iPhone 12, 13, and 14 without any damage to its brand image, as the sanction only hit at the moment of the iPhone 15 launch.
Statement from Phonegate Alert
Dr. Marc Arazi challenges the ANFR:
“This case reveals a systemic failure in the surveillance of the mobile telephony market. Between the retail sampling and the final decision, the iPhone 12 underwent software modifications and protocols negotiated with Apple. Rather than protecting users’ health as soon as non-compliance was discovered, the ANFR’s inertia effectively secured the tech giant’s commercial strategy. The question is now blunt: at what point did the telecoms regulator abandon its mission to protect consumers?”
📚 Resources and Reference Documents
To ensure total transparency regarding this investigation, the NGO Phonegate Alert provides the source documents and references cited in this article:
📄 Technical and Official Reports
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[1] Test Report CTC Advanced n° 1-1800/21-269-02 (July 2022): The full report detailing the initial non-compliance of the iPhone 12 and revealing the change of iOS during testing. [📥 Download PDF]
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[3] Compliance Test Report (September 29, 2023): Document used as the basis for lifting the temporary withdrawal and detailing “Protocol 2” negotiated with Apple. [📥 Download PDF]
⚖️ Legal and Regulatory Framework
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[2] Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/1760: Official text of August 19, 2025, confirming the non-compliance of the iPhone 12 and warning against manufacturers’ “proprietary” technical tools. [🔗 View on Eur-Lex]
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[4] Official ANFR Announcement (September 12, 2023): Requesting the partial withdrawal of the iPhone 12 in France. [📥 Download PDF]
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[5] ICSMS Notification (Information and Communication System on Market Surveillance): Evidence of the late registration on October 5, 2023, of the iPhone 12’s non-compliance with European authorities. [🔗 Access document transmitted by the Commission 30. Safeguard 2014-53-EU]