https://motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/43jywd/why-tens-of-thousands-of-perfectly-good-donated-iphones-are-shredded-every-year

Tens of thousands of perfectly usable iPhones are scrapped each year by electronics recyclers because of the iPhone’s “activation lock,” according to a new analysis paper published Thursday.

Earlier this year, we published a lengthy feature about the iPhone’s activation lock (also called iCloud lock informally), an anti-theft feature that prevents new accounts from logging into iOS without the original user’s iCloud password. This means that stolen phones can’t be used by the person who stole it without the original owner’s iCloud password (this lock can also be remotely enabled using Find My iPhone.) The feature makes the iPhone a less valuable theft target, but it has had unintended consequences, as well. iCloud lock has led to the proliferation of an underground community of hackers who use phishing and other techniques to steal iCloud passwords from the original owner and unlock phones. It’s also impacted the iPhone repair, refurbishing, and recycling industry, because phones that are legitimately obtained often still have iCloud enabled, making that phone useless except for parts.