Apple's upcoming watchOS 2 will bring Activation Lock to the Apple Watch, the company quietly revealed on Monday via a new webpage for the operating system.
As on devices with iOS 7 or 8, Activation Lock will prevent someone from re-activating a lost or stolen Watch without a previously-linked Apple ID. One difference is that owners will need to turn on the feature using the Watch's companion iPhone app.
The lack of anti-theft measures for the Watch has been a recurring complaint. While there are some security measures in place, such as passcodes, Find My Watch, and automatic data wipes, these are more focused around protecting personal information and won't stop a thief from reusing or reselling the product, which can cost anywhere between $349 and $17,000.
watchOS 2 will add a variety of features, such as native app support, third-party complications, a Nightstand mode, new faces, and public transit directions. Third-party apps will also have access to more hardware features, such as the accelerometer, microphone, and Digital Crown.
An early beta of watchOS 2 is currently available for developers, but the final software won't reach the public until this fall.