iPhone 12 Ban in France
Mobile phone safety is more important than ever after news circulated of the iPhone 12 sales being halted in France due to a breach of radiation exposure limits.
France halted sales of the iPhone 12 in September after the French National Frequencies Agency (ANFR) watchdog released a public statement claiming the smartphone breached European radiation exposure limits. They ran tests which showed the model’s Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) was higher than legally allowed. SAR is a measure of the rate of radio frequency energy absorbed by the body from a piece of equipment. One of their recent tests measured the specific absorption rate by simulating the phone being held in the hand or kept in a pocket and the results showed a rate of 5.74 watts per kilogram. The EU standard for SAR is 4.0 watts per kilogram.
Following the iPhone 15 release, Apple have stopped selling the iPhone 12 anyway however for people still using this model, Apple have stated they will release a software update that will address the concerns and will make the iPhone 12 comply with their radiation standards.
Jean-Noel Barrot, the French junior minister for the digital economy, said a software update would be sufficient to fix the radiation issues linked to the phone. He told Le Parisien newspaper in an interview that: “Apple is expected to respond within two weeks. If they fail to do so, I am prepared to order a recall of all iPhones 12 in circulation. The rule is the same for everyone, including the digital giants.” The ANFR have responded to say “If Apple chooses to update its telephones, it shall be verified by the ANFR.”
Whilst this is good news that the issue appears to be getting resolved fairly quickly, it does shine a spotlight on mobile phone safety. The iPhone 12 may have been found to exceed safety standards but most experts in the EMR safety field would argue that the safety testing limits are already outdated and inadequate.
Regardless of the model, smartphones should be used responsibly to reduce your exposure to EMR as much as possible. At Grounded Wellness, we understand how convenient smartphones have become in modern life and how reliant we are on them; however, we are also passionate about educating the importance of using them safely and understanding the potential electromagnetic exposure risks that come with having a smartphone.
Mobile phones should ideally be kept at a distance from the body and put on airplane mode with Wi-Fi disabled whenever it’s not in use. There are protective cases and accessories that can help to reduce your exposure further and we have a full range available on our website.
For more tips on reducing your exposure to radio frequencies from your phone and smart devices and how to use your smartphone safely, read our page Reducing Your Exposure.