Why does Siri require my iPhone to be unlocked first?

@lobsterghost1 actual Apple app developer here. I will challenge “senior member” as what he has said makes zero sense, whether he has helped the world out a million times over or not. We don’t need to get technical about anything other than to say in what universe are you all able to walk into a room and activate Siri on OTHER peoples phones. That’s only been the case with android phones when YouTube videos and other recordings could activate “hey google,” but that’s far and between.

There’s never to my knowledge been a time when you can walk into a room and announce “hey siri” activating it on others phones. If you want me to run serious tests AT the Apple Store, record it, and submit it online I certainly can. But please refrain from backing up false and inaccurate information simply because it came from a senior member. This information is blatantly false, and many users have confirmed this with their spouses phones when announcing “hey siri.” If we all have forgotten, “hey siri” is first activated by saying it a few times and even announcing small phrases to train it specifically for your phone/account. It’s wild someone with such a high level of support would seriously believe, and thus explain, it to happen any other way.

to the other users wanting an answer, reference Faisal’s answer please.

Today is 10.3.24 at 5:21 PM EDT, and Siri continues to tell me to unlock my phone before it will make a call. However it worked perfectly fine at noon today. I have done all the troubleshooting including disabling Siri, locked settings, network settings, you name it, I’ve done it. What’s going on?

That is completely strange. I have a special shortcut set for “hey siri where are you”. Typically it will say “im here” or “here i am”. But I changed it so to set a timer for 1 sec. I say it loud and clear even with my wife’s phone nearby that my phone can hear it anywhere in my apt. Only my phone responds. No other phone even makes a gesture.

your voice must be something special.

User1212- wrote:

Try going to

settings

accessibility

and set up voice control

Did you notice that you just responded to a 2 year old post? And that your suggestion has absolutely nothing to do with the original problem?

That option is selected in my settings, however sometimes I have to unlock my phone while other times I don’t.

it just happened within five minutes of each other. I had my phone on the kitchen counter, my Bluetooth headset on my head while I was in the bedroom and told Siri to call a particular contact and she did. That contact wasn’t available so I ended the call without leaving a voice message. Again, with the phone still on the counter and me being 5 feet away from it I pushed the button on my headset and told Siri to make another call and she said I had to unlock my iPhone first.

I really don’t get it.

sad

Hey Siri I need to unlock my iPhone First

It doenst work tried it

Same here I had to totally disable Siri. Will switch to android If they don’t fix it soon.

not working

bhavya178 wrote:

not working

What isn’t working?

I was in a meeting a while ago, and I said “Hey Siri” and a number of phones responded. At home when I say Hey Siri both my iPhone and my wife’s iPhone or iPad, (whichever is closer), responds

Alright very senior guy, you are wrong. You can’t go up to any phone and say hey siri. It doesn’t work like that anymore. Now you train siri with “hey siri” phrases. Try doing this with someone who has not set up siri yet.

it will tell you to repeatedly say various phrases beginning with siri or hey siri.

and this was a very good way to unlock phones back in the day. It got disabled at some point!

Steve.Knepp wrote:

That option is selected in my settings, however sometimes I have to unlock my phone while other times I don’t.

it just happened within five minutes of each other. I had my phone on the kitchen counter, my Bluetooth headset on my head while I was in the bedroom and told Siri to call a particular contact and she did. That contact wasn’t available so I ended the call without leaving a voice message. Again, with the phone still on the counter and me being 5 feet away from it I pushed the button on my headset and told Siri to make another call and she said I had to unlock my iPhone first.

I really don’t get it.

Well, let me help you “get it”. If Siri needs to get private information off your phone it has to be unlocked. So the first time it was still unlocked, and the second time the phone had timed out and locked.

Thus, “Siri, what is tomorrow’s weather” does not require your phone to be unlocked, but “Siri, call my mother” does, because that information is in your personal contacts. You wouldn’t want it to be different; otherwise, someone who found your phone or just picked it up when your attention was elsewhere you ask Siri almost anything personal, like “where is my date tonight?"