Apple just fixed this annoying lock screen feature with iOS 26.1

There’s a new rocker in town with iOS 26.1: Apple’s first update for iOS 26 officially rolled out to users this week, and it comes with several intuitive improvements. From customize the appearance of liquid glass to a new way of turn off your alarms and timersMost of the changes seemed small but substantial, making iOS feel all the more natural.

One of my favorite additions is actually the ability to remove a long-standing feature: swiping left on your lock screen to access the camera. For nearly a decade, it has provided both convenience and frustration. On the one hand, it’s an easy way to access your camera for a quick shot. But on the other, sometimes dozens of accidental openings per day. No one likes a messy roll of film, and that’s why my gallery has been cluttered for almost ten years.

Fortunately, the iOS 26.1 update will finally allow me to close the chapter of surprise camera appearances. Here’s how to turn off swipe-to-camera accessibility and everything you need to know about iOS 26.1.

How to Disable Lock Screen Swipe in iOS 26.1

Update your iPhone to get rid of it

Swiping left anywhere on your lock screen to open the camera is a convenient gesture that launched with iOS 10 in 2016. Now almost a decade old, Apple has finally acknowledged that some users aren’t really sticking to it. My encounters with accidental camera launches are not unique: whenever I visit my parents, I see them accidentally opening their camera several times a day. Even though it doesn’t seem to bother them, it drives me crazy.

Between an on-screen lock screen button for the camera, the physical button that became the iPhone 16’s camera control, and the Camera app itself on iOS, it wasn’t like we were short on ways to quickly snap a photo.

Initially introduced in its fourth beta, iOS 26.1 allows you to completely disable the swipe to launch camera gesture. Now that the official update is available to everyone with a compatible iPhone, here’s how to disable it:

1. Open Settings.

2. Choose Camera.

3. Scroll to Swipe the lock screen to open the camera. Rock it Disabled.

Yes, it’s that simple. No more unintentional openings, accidental action shots on your next run, or helping a confused family member get off their camera while they were trying to show you a Facebook post.

What’s new in iOS 26.1?

Liquid Glass is gone, Apple Music gestures and Photos tweaks – oh my god

As I mentioned, this first update to iOS 26 doesn’t feature any scroll-inhibiting changes – aside from the Apple TV app losing the “Plus” to reflect the larger rebranding. The most notable change so far is the customization switch to Liquid Glass “Tint” to increase contrast and opacity, which makes many users sigh in relief. Liquid Glass was a real controversy.

However, there was several other updates that might interest you, including the following:

• Live translation with AirPods support for Chinese (Simplified and Traditional), Japanese, Korean, and Italian

• New Apple Intelligence languages: Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese, Swedish, Turkish, Chinese (traditional), and Vietnamese

• Apple Music MiniPlayer swipe gesture to skip to next or previous track

• Support for Apple Music AutoMix over AirPlay

• Gain control is available for external USB microphones when recording with local capture

• Local capture files can be saved to a specific location

• Manual workout recording is available directly from the Fitness app

• Improved FaceTime audio quality in low bandwidth conditions

• Communications safety and web content filters to limit adult websites are enabled by default for existing child accounts aged 13-17 (age varies by country or region).

My favorite is changing the alarm and timer screens. Now, instead of pressing Snooze or Stop, actions are separated by gestures to prevent accidental dismissal of the alarm: press to Snooze and slide to stop. I guess I won’t sleep too long or see my apps directly, thanks to iOS 26.1.