Reuters details Apple`s latest effort to prevent users from tinkering with the iPhone

Reuters was the first news organization to report on Jan 20 that Apple was quietly making it more difficult for iPhone users to tamper with their gadgets, as part of the companys attempt to exercise total control over its products. Sources told Reuters that when a customer brings an iPhone 4 into a U.S. Apple store for repair, tech staff will swap out the commonly used Phillips screws and replace them with so-called Pentalobe screws. These new screws make it much harder for customers to open up their iPhones to replace the batteries — forcing them instead to pay Apple to do it. Customers are not told about the switch. The story about the worlds most popular smartphone was quickly picked up by CNBC, which credited Reuters with the news in broadcasts throughout the day. Dow Jones and many other media outlets also picked up the Reuters report.