William K.BlackJun 16, 2021 17:22:09 IST
Apple rolled out a significant security update to older iOS devices, on Wednesday, to fix security concerns. The company has released iOS 12.5.4 software update for iPhone 5s, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPad Air, iPad mini 2, iPad mini 3, and iPod touch (6th generation). The update will fix the security concerns for three major vulnerabilities faced by the devices. With this, the tech giant is aiming to fix the vulnerabilities affecting WebKit and memory corruption.
iPhone 6. Image: Apple
As per the support page, Apple said that the WebKit issues might have been actively exploited in particular. The page also shows that iOS 12.5.4 addresses two vulnerabilities in the WebKit engine that are classified as CVE-2021-30761 and CVE-2021-30762. There is also a memory corruption issue with the older devices — CVE-2021-30737.
Users of these devices should install the iOS 12.5.4 update to get the issues resolved.
The new iOS version has been released nearly a month after the company released iOS 12.5.3 for older iPhones and iPad in May, which comprised fixes for four WebKit-related issues, including some zero-day flaws. That update came alongside iOS 14.5.1 and iPadOS 14.5.1 for newer iPhone and iPad models, respectively.
The reason behind the security update is that Apple’s system apps are updated via system upgrade unlike in Android which “decouples” system components like the Android System Webview so that they can be updated via the Play Store. Updating the system apps by system upgrade means that the company has to dispatch new OS updates whenever there is a major security concern.
Since Apple’s security updates do not carry any interface-level changes, you may not be able to receive any updates while installing the new iOS version on it.
The new iPhone and iPad models are already running iOS 14.6 and iPadOS 14.6 respectively – so if you have a new iPhone or iPad, you must not be considering the latest iOS 12 release on your device. If you’re an Apple device user with an older device, you can download the update by going to Settings > General > Software Update. It is recommended to back up your device data before beginning the download update.
