Apple Patches Serious Security Flaws With iOS Update

Apple has warned about serious security flaws which hackers may have "actively exploited" and has released an urgent security update for its iPhone, iPad and Mac devices.

Users of these devices are advised to immediately install the software updates that include security patches to fix two zero-day vulnerabilities. 

The patches fix vulnerabilities that allow attackers to execute arbitrary code and take over devices. The flaws lie in the kernel and WebKit functions. 

The update has been made available to iPhone 6s and later, iPad Pro, iPad Air 2 and later and iPad 5th generation and later. It is also available to the iPad mini 4 and later versions and the iPod touch (7th generation). Mac users running macOS Monterey are also being encouraged to update. “For the protection of our customers, Apple doesn't disclose, discuss, or confirm security issues until an investigation has occurred and patches or releases are generally available. This document lists recent releases,” an Apple advisory notice said.

Software updates are an everyday aspect of our modern tech lives, but this is one update that should not be ignored.

• One of the software weaknesses affects the kernel, the deepest layer of the operating system that all the devices have in common.

• The other affects WebKit, the underlying technology of the Safari web browser and Apple said this could be used by hackers if the user accessed "maliciously-crafted web content". 

There have been no confirmed reports of specific cases where the security flaw has been used against people or devices, although there is suspicion that Apple is acting in response to widely reported use of spyware developed by Israel's NSOGroup.

For each of the bugs, the company said it was “aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited,” though it provided no further details although crediting an anonymous researcher for disclosing both software flaws.

Previous research has shown that even commercial spyware companies such as Israel's NSO Group are known for identifying and taking advantage of such flaws, exploiting them in malware that surreptitiously infects targets' smartphones, siphons their contents and spies target users in real time. 

Users should rightly be concerned about the potential power hackers could wield if they target a device that is vulnerable to this attack. While the most vulnerable to these problems are high profile targets like politicians and celebrities, everyone should update their iOS devices as soon as possible.

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