Level 1

81 points

Why is System Services consuming excessive data on iPhone 15 Pro Max?

I have an iPhone 15 Pro Max using iOS 18.5.

I have a plan with limited data and normally this isn’t an issue - I am rarely out of Wifi coverage. The last 4 times I have been out of Wifi coverage, my phone has eaten all of my data - each time I have topped it up again and tried various fixes.

I am using Low data mode, data is off for all apps, I have turned off location services for everything except “Find my”, “Emergency calls and SOS” and “Setting time zone”; the only apps having access to location services are switched to “While using” and were not being used at the time of data drain.

I took a screen shot of my data usage at 4:35pm (21.4Mb) and another at 10:29pm (1.03Gb) and my phone had been turned off for about 2 of those hours. When I look at the data usage, it is mainly System services/General (1.02Gb)

You can see from the screenshots of messages from my cell phone provider that the data is disappearing rapidly - 204Mb in 1 minute on 6 May and 414Mb in 7 minutes on 20 May. The 414Mb disappeared while I was playing music that had already been downloaded onto my phone (it has been there for several months). I know that the usage on 20 May was after I had restarted my phone (it was turned off for about 2 hours while I was out).

Other than turning cellular data off altogether, how do I fix this???

Image 1 - before data drain

Image 2 - after data drain

Image 3 - "System services/General" is the culprit!

Image 4 - texts from provider showing the rapidity of the data drain (414Mb in 7 minutes)

[Edited by Moderator]

iPhone 15 Pro Max, iOS 18

Posted on May 22, 2025 4:04 PM

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guildfordnz Author

Level 1

81 points

Posted on Jul 15, 2025 1:31 PM

This conversation doesn’t appear in chronological order on my screen, so it may not be obvious that I seem to have solved the issue by resetting my phone and NOT restoring from backup.

I read many threads on many different platforms about this issue. It does seem that the issue is not uncommon. I didn’t talk to Apple as others had noted that they weren’t able to solve the problem this way.

I do wonder if that rather it being a problem with Apple, it was a problem with some other piece of software that was on my phone (even a worm or some other malicious thing?) that was using data under System Services/General. That’s why I didn’t restore my phone from backup and have only added back the items that I need instead of everything that was there before.

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23 replies

Foyaman

Level 1

14 points

Aug 9, 2025 2:24 AM in response to kostby

Dear Kostby,

I believe that you are correct; I had a spike in mobile data usage whilst trying out my theory above.

I tried your method of disabling Apple Intelligence; but it is a shame not to have it all the time.

Is there a way to get Apple Intelligence to work only on WiFi?

guildfordnz Author

Level 1

81 points

Jun 9, 2025 1:50 PM in response to guildfordnz

Darn! Yesterday my phone did it again…. All of my data gone in a few minutes…

I'm just about ready to try erasing my phone and starting over from scratch - not even restoring from a backup…

Foyaman

Level 1

14 points

Jul 15, 2025 7:27 AM in response to guildfordnz

What is Apple saying about it?

It seems to be a common issue across IOS18.5 and puts one with limited mobile data packages at a real disadvantage.

guildfordnz Author

Level 1

81 points

Jul 18, 2025 1:03 PM in response to skarsh

I don’t use either of those. I use Vodafone

simonhcl

Level 1

8 points

Oct 2, 2025 4:11 PM in response to guildfordnz

I am experiencing similar problem even on my iphone 12pro max where i had over 3.6GB being sucked out within 1 min🤯

May 24, 2025 1:56 AM in response to guildfordnz

To see how much mobile data you've used, go to Settings > Mobile. If you're using an iPad, you may see Settings > Mobile Data. If your device is enrolled in Mobile Device Management, related data will be reported in System Services > Corporate Accounts. Scroll down to find out which apps are using mobile data.

Use mobile data on your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support (IN)

May 24, 2025 1:56 AM in response to guildfordnz

Is this your corporate/organisation/enterprise/School Management iPhone? Then please contact the system administrator of your corporate//organisation/enterprise/School Management
If it is your device, in that case, do you have any profile installed by your corporate/organisation/enterprise/School Management?
1. Erase the profile added by you If you have installed a profile on your own --> Install or remove configuration profiles on iPhone - Apple ...
2. Or please contact the system administrator of the organisation who provided the profile to you

A corporate profile installed on your iPhone could potentially be contributing to the inaccessibility of certain features.

Here's why:

Restrictions: Corporate profiles can have restrictions placed on apps and functionalities. These restrictions might be limiting some activity, causing it to be unresponsive or quit.
Managed Apps: IT departments might deploy specific navigation apps through the profile, potentially blocking certain functions or features.
Security Settings: Corporate profiles often have stricter security settings that could affect app or function behavior. This might be causing unexpected behavior of an App or functions.

Here's what you can do:

Check with IT: The best course of action is to contact your IT department. They can explain the restrictions set by the corporate profile and see what is affected. They might be able to adjust settings or suggest alternative apps or features approved for corporate use.
Look for App Conflicts: See if your IT department uses a different app through the corporate profile. Conflicting apps might cause crashes.

Additional points to consider:

Even if the profile isn't directly affecting the function, it's still a good idea to check with IT. They might be aware of similar issues and have workarounds.
While troubleshooting, make sure you prioritize safety. Don't fiddle with your phone.

By working with IT and considering these possibilities, you can hopefully identify if the corporate profile is the culprit and find a solution that allows you to use the iPhone to your liking.

Foyaman

Level 1

14 points

Aug 2, 2025 5:59 PM in response to guildfordnz

Following the IOS 18.6 update, the breakdown of the system services usage of mobile data is more granular and the culprit is software updates.

Therefore, my next trial is to keep App Store connected only via WIFI for the next few weeks.

I already lost 1.13 Gb data on the first day of August; so I have a good benchmark.

[Edited by Moderator]

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Why is System Services consuming excessive data on iPhone 15 Pro Max?