'Activation lock' to tighten iOS security

Apple may not be able to do anything to stop a mugger from stealing your iPhone, but changes in iOS 7 will prevent the thief from trying to sell the phone as new.More from WWDCMeet iTunes Radio, Apple's long-awaited streaming music serviceApple gives the iPhone a user interface face-lift with iOS 7 Editors' Take: iOS 7 gets a new look and several new featuresApple unveils new MacBook Air, gives Mac Pro sneak peek Editors' Take: Apple updates MacBook AirEditors' Take: A bold new look for the Mac Pro desktopEditors' Take: Apple Mac OS X 10.9 MavericksWWDC 2013: Full coverage At its Worldwide Developers Conference here on Monday, Apple unveiled several security enhancements. Activation Lock is the most interesting. Though the company didn't go deep into detail on the new feature, Apple's head of Mac software engineering, Craig Federighi, said the feature prevents unauthorized resetting of an iPhone or iPad.Basically, if the Find My Phone tracking utility has been deactivated, or if the phone has been wiped, the thief will have to know the owner's Apple ID and password before the device will work again.Smaller security improvements in iOS 7 will include per-app activation for a Virtual Private Network (VPN), allowing people to have more granular control over how their VPN settings get used; and the operating system update also will include message blocking.