This security update is critical.
Nurphoto through Getty Images
Apple suddenly revealed a stunning new security update for iPhone users, coming with the next iPhone update – ios 26.1. This new update protects users from “faster” security issues, including farms that “exist in the wild”.
The Apple ”Rapid security answers“Introduced in 2023, a little known feature designed to” provide significant security improvements between software updates “, without all the Rigmarole of an iOS update.
“By default,” Apple tells users, “your device automatically applies rapid security answers. If necessary, you will be asked to restart your device.”
With iOS 26.1 – in beta since yesterday – these rapid security updates will change. Per Macworld“According to the code discovered in Beta”, it is clear that “the system will soon be called backdrop improvements. The feature does not appear to be available to users who execute Beta, but its existence in the code indicates that it will come soon.”
The new system “serves the same purpose” as the original, Macworld He says: “But there is a key difference between rapid security and new background security improvements: new background safety improvements will be silently installed on the device without having to be manually updated.
This seamless update is a crucial step to ensure rapid development of critical updates as soon as they are released, without kicking the user’s inaction. “The code implies that Apple plans to make these automatic patches optional when the system becomes available.”
Apple says “if necessary”, with the current system, “you will be asked to restart your device”. It is not clear whether this will ever happen by updating iOS 26.1. The background system also allows a reset if an update goes wrong after release.
This system is not only slightly known, it is also slightly used. But Apple’s suppression for Spyware is growing, as shown with new memory defenses with this year’s iPhone 17 and the iPhone Air. File background updates can also become more critical.
Macworld It says “new background security improvements are also coming to other Apple platforms, including MacOS. There are no details on when iOS 26.1 will be released to the public, but we expect it to be released sometime in October.”
Apple’s ability to update everyone everywhere when it comes to iPhone security fixes is an important point of sale. On Android, only Google can do the same with Pixel devices. When it comes to Apple against the Battle of Samsung of flagship, this stands out as an important issue for Galaxy-Maker, and one that is not improving.
“When a quick security response has been applied,” says Apple, “a letter appears after the software number, as in this example: MacOS 13.3.1 (A)”.
