Whatever you do, don't set your iPhone to this date

Here at ShortList we like to provide you with short, simple guides to accessing features on your phone you never knew existed. 

This is one you're not going to want to try (unless you're pulling off the meanest prank of 2016).

An iPhone bug has been noted by the Jailbreak community of Reddit that "bricks" your handset if you set the date to 1 January 1970.

By setting the date manually via Settings and resetting the phone, anyone with iPhone 5S handset or newer (the bug appears to be a problem for models running 64-bit processors) will find their model won't restart. It can't be reset via iTunes, nor will a manual reset work - the only known fix is to take it to an Apple store to have the battery removed and restored. 

You can watch the bizarre bug tested out below.

The original Reddit thread discussing the bug notes that it won't impact all devices.

"In some time zones, setting the date to 1 Jan 1970 will set the internal clock to a number less than zero," explains one contributor, "as the time is stored in GMT (as the number of seconds since midnight on that date) and then the offset is applied before display. In other time zones, setting the clock will result in a positive time value. Best guess is that this is triggered by having the time value less than zero."

Apple are said to be aware of the error, and are working on a permanent fix. Until then, best not leave your iPhone unlocked around anyone with a history of committing aggressive practical jokes.

[Via: Business Insider]

(Images: Shutterstock)