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If you recently installed a security patch on your iPhone or iPad running in beta mode, chances are you installed a bogus update designed to test Apple’s latest feature and not a genuine security patch.
Last summer, Apple introduced a new feature for beta users designed to speed up the rollout of security patches. Usually, iPhone, iPad, and Mac users have to wait for Apple to release a cumulative update to get the latest vulnerability patches.
At the last WWDC conference, the company demonstrated a feature called Rapid Security Response that addresses this problem by allowing users to download security patches as they become available.
Fake plasters
But the feature is still being worked on and tested. Recently, users of iOS and iPadOS 16.2 beta received an update called “iOS 16.2(a) (20C5049e)”, which, as Apple confirmed to 9to5Mac, was not an actual update, but a blank patch that the company used to see if the feature works properly.
Now the Cupertino giant has pushed a second update for beta users – “iOS 16.2 (b) (20C7750490f)”. At this point, it’s not yet confirmed if this is an actual update or just another test.
Rapid Security Response allows key updates to be “applied automatically between standard software updates,” according to Apple. Another major change is that some upgrades no longer require a device restart, but instead take effect as soon as they are installed.
With iOS 16, Apple also introduced a unique security feature called Safety Check that allows victims of abuse to quickly and seamlessly cut all ties with their abusers. Safety Check allows users to remotely disable messages on secondary devices or disable location tracking, among other things.
Face ID, a feature that allows Apple device owners to unlock their devices using their face instead of passwords or fingerprints, has also been upgraded to support landscape mode. So far, the feature has been confirmed to work on iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max.
Through: 9to5Mac (opens in new tab)