Apple’s Medical ID helps man find lost phone after 4 days at sea

 A man lost his iPhone in the sea for four days but was able to find it using Apple’s Medical ID feature. The phone was located 3 meters underwater, just 10 meters from the shore.

Apple’s Medical ID feature

Thiago Itagaki, a beachgoer at Maresias, a popular beach in São Paulo, Brazil, found a lost iPhone while swimming.

When users lose their Apple devices, they typically attempt to locate them using the “Find My” feature, which helps track and find Apple devices—even when they are offline.

Apple’s Medical ID feature allows first responders to access critical medical information from the lock screen without needing a passcode. It usually includes details such as allergies and emergency contact numbers.

When Itagaki found the phone, its battery was dead. After recharging the device, he accessed the Medical ID information and contacted one of the listed emergency contacts. Thanks to this, he successfully returned the phone to its owner.

The iPhone owner explained that he lost his phone on New Year’s Eve and made several attempts to locate it using the “Find My” feature, but he was not able to, assuming the battery was dead and the phone had been lost at sea.

The owner was surprised to learn that Itagaki had found the phone while swimming and successfully tracked him down using the Medical ID feature available on the device.

Notably, all recent iPhone models have a water resistance feature. However, this feature is only guaranteed for specific depths and durations. The lost iPhone was found about 3 meters underwater and still worked perfectly after being charged.

This case has urged all Apple users to set up their Medical IDs by accessing the Health application on their devices and creating their own profiles, which could help if their phones are ever lost.