Stolen iPhone, will my private pictures get out?

If your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch is lost or stolen

Reporting a lost or stolen Apple product

In theory it can probably be jailbroken and raided if somebody really wanted to go to a log of effort. Newer phones are encrypted so they have to be unlocked before they are accessible.

iOS: Understanding data protection

I would not consider it a huge worry. Most thieves prefer to wipe the phone and resell it rather than try to get to data on the phone and really with the Find My iPhone system on the phone will become unusable at that point.

NangyEP wrote:

Should I rather erase it?

Yes. It's the smart and safe thing to do.

I would say the feature is there for those that think they need it. There is no statistics on how many stolen phones have had data compromised. I don't think I've seen an article saying it will happen. If the hardware is more valuable don't. If the data is more valuable to. I have a lot of faith in Apple devices but I know the newest ones are much better at protecting data then older versions.

Personally I would put the phone in Lost Mode so it can alert you where it is. When a phone is in lost mode it cannot be reactivated except by you.

iCloud: Use Lost Mode

However, if you are truly concerned then erase the phone. Nobody can stop a determined thief.

For me while personal data can be embarrassing it would not be life altering.

NangyEP wrote:

Im perplexed. Tell me what to do?

We can't tell you whether or not to roll the dice. What's more important?

A) Being 100% sure that no one could get access to the data on the iPhone.

B) Not having the data on the iPhone if you do recover it?

If it's 'A', erase the device. If it's 'B', just use Lost Mode.