iOS 26 has a serious bug with Face ID, have you encountered it?

VHO - After updating to iOS 26, many iPhone users reported that Face ID was disabled. The cause is related to Apple's new Stolen Device Protection feature.

Many iPhone users, especially the iPhone 15 Pro Max series, said that Face ID suddenly stopped working right after the official iOS 26 update.

Previously, during the beta period, this feature was still working normally. Reports on the Apple forums show that this is not an isolated case, but an issue that is affecting quite a number of devices.

The cause is believed to be related to the Stolen Device Protection security feature that Apple has just added in iOS 26. This feature requires higher security, accidentally causing Face ID to conflict. Fortunately, there is still a temporary solution: turn off Stolen Device Protection, restart the device and reinstall Face ID. After that, users can turn this protection mode back on to ensure safety. This problem has the iPhone community worried and waiting for Apple to release a patch in the near future.

Face ID issue after update

An iPhone 15 Pro Max user shared that the device ran the iOS 26 beta from June to September without any problems, only encountering a small problem. But when upgrading to the official version of iOS 26, the Face ID feature suddenly stopped working. The device could not be unlocked with Face ID, tried restarting, resetting Face ID — all of which did not help.

This isn’t the only one affected. Many users have posted on the Apple community forum about Face ID issues after the update, with the device prompting them to enter their passcode instead of using their face.

The main cause was discovered

The bug appears to be related to the new Stolen Device Protection feature Apple introduced in iOS 26. When enabled, the device requires more security – if a user attempts to authenticate with Face ID or Touch ID for “sensitive” actions, the system may delay or require a second biometric authentication.

How to fix it immediately

If you encounter Face ID errors after updating to iOS 26, try the following steps:

Go to Settings → Privacy & Security → Stolen Device Protection and temporarily disable this feature.

Restart your iPhone by pressing the volume up button, quickly pressing the volume down button, then holding the right button until you see the power off slider. Turn off your phone and then restart it.

Once your phone restarts, go to Face ID & Passcode and reset Face ID. If everything goes well, Face ID should be working again.

Once Face ID is back, you can turn Stolen Device Protection back on if you want, to ensure both security and facial authentication.

Resetting Face ID on iPhone can fix Face ID error if you follow some of the instructions above | Image source: PhoneArena.

Impact and notes

Losing Face ID causes a lot of inconvenience, especially for those who are used to using facial security to unlock the device, pay, and authenticate applications.

The iOS 26 update, despite being officially released, still has unexpected bugs like this — suggesting users should prepare mentally and back up their devices before the major update.

Only follow the instructions if you're sure you're doing each step correctly; otherwise, you may get locked out of Face ID or encounter other problems.

Conclude

Face ID is an important feature that makes the iPhone experience more convenient and secure. The problem after the iOS 26 update is an unfortunate problem, but it was quickly discovered by users, and there is an effective temporary fix. If you are waiting to update or have just updated to iOS 26, you should check if Face ID is okay, and if you encounter errors, try the steps above. Apple is expected to have a fix in the next updates.

According to Phone Arena

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