Silicon valley giant Apple has been slapped with a A$9m (£5m) after an Australian regulator accused the company of deliberately disabling users' devices.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) said the company used a software update to "brick" the devices of customers who had used a third party to repair their phone or tablet's broken screen.
Apple were also found to have refused to unlock devices if they had been fixed by repairers who didn't work for the tech titan.
Around 275 customers were affected by an 'error 53 problem' and told they would not have their bricked phone unlocked.
The Australian Federal court fined Apple A$9m for making false or misleading representations to customers with faulty iPhones or iPads.
Read more: Apple facing possible ban on some US iPhone imports over patent battle
"Apples representations led customers to believe theyd be denied a remedy for their faulty device because they used a third party repairer,” said ACCC Commissioner Sarah Court.
"The court declared the mere fact that an iPhone or iPad had been repaired by someone other than Apple did not, and could not, result in the consumer guarantees ceasing to apply, or the consumers right to a remedy being extinguished.
"If people buy an iPhone or iPad from Apple and it suffers a major failure, they are entitled to a refund," she added. "If customers would prefer a replacement, they are entitled to a new device as opposed to refurbished, if one is available."
An Apple spokesperson said:
We're constantly looking for ways to enhance the service we deliver and we had very productive conversations with the ACCC about this. We will continue to do all we can to deliver excellent service to all of our customers in Australia.
Read more: Apple unveils new iOS 12, Siri and group Facetime features at conference
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