Apple's Find My feature coming to Korea next spring

Apple has announced that its Find My feature will come to Korea, the only country where it doesn't work, in spring 2025.

iPhones are displayed during an event in Cupertino, California, on Sept. 10, 2019. [AP/YONHAP]

Apple said Thursday that it will make its Find My feature available in Korea in spring 2025.

The network, which has not been fully operational in the country since its 2010 launch, allows users to track the locations of their Apple devices, as well as those of trusted contacts. An alarm feature also helps owners find lost devices that are nearby.

Korea is currently the only country where Find My doesn't work. Some users have speculated that its absence is related to the country's national security policies, but the Korea Communications Commission recently clarified that no such regulation restricted the service.

An online petition calling for the company to bring Find My to Korea circulated in online communities back in August, collecting thousands of signatures.

"Because of Apple's unclear reason for banning Find My features in Korea for the past 15 years and more, Apple device users had to endure inconveniences including potential damage incurred from the theft of the devices such as phone trafficking or the sending of phishing messages,” stated the petition, which was posted July 22.

BY MONICA CHIN [monica.chin@joongang.co.kr]