The new capital controls imposed by the Greek government are having unforeseen consequences in hundreds of different ways. Not only is it the grind of standing in ever-lengthening ATM queues for the daily €60, it is the restrictions that keep multiplying, often in ways that had not been imagined.
Today thousands of Greeks are finding that their Apple systems are in danger of being blocked because Greek credit cards are no longer accepted in payment. This is not directly the fault of Apple, simply that the system will not support payments abroad. Most heavy users of Apple equipment subscribe to the monthly iCloud top-ups and will be unable to renew for next month, resulting in a reduction of storage to the free 5GB.
Greeks can no longer buy apps or music. Stocks of new hardware will disappear from the shops because there is no money to fund imports. These are small irritants in the general scheme of things, particularly as a part of the overall disaster facing Greece, but they are another reminder of the problems that will come from the country’s exit from the Euro.
I would recommend any Apple users in Greece to starting backing up their phones and tablets to iTunes rather than relying on iCloud. At least they will have some protection if Apple is forced to close down their over-5GB storage facilities.