After a French agency ordered a halt to its sales due to violations of European Union radiation exposure restrictions on Wednesday, Apple defended its iPhone 12 model.

The French action increased the likelihood of other bans in Europe. In addition to being in close communication with French authorities, Germany’s network regulator BNetzA stated it might initiate similar legal action, and the OCU consumer organisation in Spain urged Spanish authorities to ban the sale of the iPhone 12.

In a statement, Apple claimed that the 2020-released iPhone 12 had received certification from a number of international organisations as meeting all applicable radiation standards. The company also claimed that it had provided the French agency with numerous Apple and outside lab results demonstrating the phone’s compliance and that it was contesting the agency’s conclusions.

Over the past two decades, numerous studies have been undertaken to evaluate the health concerns associated with mobile phones. The World Health Organisation states that there is currently no evidence linking cell phone use to any negative health impacts.

After tests, according to France’s Agence Nationale des Fréquences (ANFR), revealed that the iPhone 12’s Specific Absorption Rate (SAR), a measurement of the rate at which radiofrequency energy from a piece of equipment is absorbed by the body, was higher than permitted, the agency ordered Apple to stop selling the device in France.

The watchdog stated that if wholesalers and Apple outlets did not stop selling the device, it would be necessary to recall any iPhone 12s that had already been sold to customers.

Regulatory limits on SAR were set much below levels where scientists have discovered evidence of harm, according to industry experts, thus there were no safety hazards.

“From a health and safety point of view, it is not as if this is putting anyone at risk,” said Professor Rodney Croft, the chair of the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP), which sets global guidelines on the SAR limits.

The restrictions are already ten times lower than the level where scientists discovered evidence of harm, based on the danger of burns or heatstroke from the phone’s radiation.

Because ANFR evaluates radiation with a method that implies direct skin contact, without intermediary textile layers, between the device and user, Croft said the French findings may not match those noted by other authorities.

A French government source added that the French test was conducted in a different way than Apple did.

42 sales across the nation have been halted as a result of smartphone radiation tests so far. It is the first time that such a move has had an impact on Apple.

The ANFR reported that during testing mimicking when the iPhone 12 was being held in the hand or kept in a trouser pocket, authorised labs discovered electromagnetic energy absorption by the body at a rate of 5.74 watts per kilogramme. The 4.0 watts per kilogramme specific absorption rate is the European norm.

When the phone was in a jacket pocket or backpack, the testing revealed the phone complied with so-called body-SAR criteria, according to ANFR. When held straight to the head as though making a phone call, it likewise passed the French tests.

According to Jean-Noel Barrot, France’s junior minister for the digital economy, a software update would be sufficient to address the radiation problems.

“Apple is expected to respond within two weeks”, he told daily Le Parisien in an interview on Tuesday, adding: “If they fail to do so, I am prepared to order a recall of all iPhones 12 in circulation. The rule is the same for everyone, including the digital giants.”

ANFR will now inform regulators in other European Union member states of its findings. In real terms, this choice might have a snowball effect, according to Barrot.

“The procedure in France has a guiding function for Europe as a whole”, said Germany’s BNetzA network regulator, adding it might launch similar proceedings in Germany.

The French decision may have ramifications for the entirety of Europe, according to Germany’s radiation authority BfS.

Apple doesn’t disaggregate its sales by nation or product type. Last year, it generated roughly $95 billion in revenues in Europe, making that continent its second-largest behind the Americas. According to some estimates, it sold more than 50 million iPhones in Europe last year. On Tuesday, the firm unveiled the iPhone 15.

In 2011, the radiofrequency electromagnetic fields produced by mobile phone use were classified as “possibly carcinogenic” by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, which develops international standards for SAR limits.

This designation, which also applies to the sweetener aspartame, aloe vera extract, and various pickled vegetables, indicates that there is only weak evidence that a substance may be carcinogenic and serves as a catalyst for further investigation.

(Adapted from BusinessToday.in)