Brett Molina

USA TODAY

Apple says a total of nine customers contacted the company complaining their iPhone 6 Plus is bent, following a flurry of social media posts about malleable smartphones.

In a statement released Thursday, Apple says issues with bent iPhones have been "extremely rare" since the devices went for sale last Friday. The company cites the aluminum body, glass screen and inserts to reinforce high-stress areas on the phone in defending the durability of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.

"We also perform rigorous tests throughout the entire development cycle including 3-point bending, pressure point cycling, sit, torsion, and user studies," reads an excerpt of Apple's statement. "iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus meet or exceed all of our high quality standards to endure everyday, real life use."

The bent smartphones -- dubbed on Twitter as #bendgate and #bendghazi -- first surfaced after several users noticed a slight bend on the new iPhones after placing them in their front pocket.

It's the latest in a series of issues focused on Apple's latest smartphones. On Wednesday, Apple launched an update to its iOS 8 mobile operating system, then quickly removed it after users complained they lost cellular service and access to the Touch ID fingerprint sensor.

Apple says an update will go out in the next few days to address the issue, and fix several bugs. Shares of Apple are down 3.4% in afternoon trading.

Follow Brett Molina on Twitter: @brettmolina23.