Update for iPhone and iPad
Apple fixes serious vulnerability: Why you should update your iPhone to iOS 15.3 immediately
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Surprisingly, Apple made the update to iOS 15.3 and iPadOS 15.3 available last night. It doesn’t bring many new functions, but every user of an iPhone or iPad should install it as soon as possible.
Normally, Apple saves the first decimal place for major updates that rebuild important functions or add new ones. It was all the more surprising when iOS 15.3 and iPadOS 15.3 were suddenly available yesterday – and not much has changed at first glance. But despite the lack of functions, both updates are extremely important for Apple: They close a serious bug – which has already been actively exploited.
Fatal error releases data
Specifically, it’s about Webkit, the substructure of all browsers in Apple’s mobile systems. An error in the so-called “Same-Origin-Policy” allowed the system to be persuaded from the outside to reveal what was actually secret user data – using a specially prepared website was sufficient for this. In this way, not only could pages opened in other apps and tabs be read, because many services such as Google use a unique user ID, the pages could also track those affected through the network.
This could not be avoided: Because all other browsers and apps also use Apple’s substructure, there was no protective measure for the user against data theft. This is all the more annoying because there are indications that the vulnerability has been actively exploited since it became known two weeks ago. A good reason to import the update as soon as possible.
iOS 15.3 and iPadOS 15.3: How to get the update
As usual, the updates can be downloaded and installed for both systems directly via the settings. A “Software update available” field is usually offered directly in the main view of the settings app. If it does not appear, the update can also be initiated under “General” and “Software update”. Alternatively, you can also transfer it to a desktop computer via iTunes (Windows) or the Finder (Mac) via a connected cable connection. The update is available for all devices that support iOS 15 (here you can find the overview)
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