Apple has released an emergency update for iOS 18.3.1, urging iPhone users to update their devices immediately due to a single security issue. The update fixes a vulnerability that can be exploited in real-life attacks, particularly against high-profile individuals such as journalists, dissidents, and government officials.
The flaw, tracked as CVE-2025-24200, was reported by Bill Marczak of The Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto’s Munk School. Apple has confirmed that a physical attack can disable USB Restricted Mode on a locked device, which could allow hackers to access sensitive data.
USB Restricted Mode is a security feature added in iOS 11.4.1 and prevents locked devices from leaking data to any accessories connected to the USB-C or Lightning port. However, this vulnerability was exploited in an extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals, according to Apple’s support page.
Security researcher Josh Long explains that such hacker tools are mostly available to government and law enforcement agencies, but it’s possible for them to fall into the wrong hands. The update is available for iPhone XS and later models, as well as iPad Pro 13-inch and later devices.
To protect your device from these attacks, Apple recommends updating to iOS 18.3.1 now. Go to Settings > Software Update to upgrade your device immediately. If you have an older iPhone model that is not impacted by this issue, there is no update available.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/kateoflahertyuk/2025/02/11/ios-1831-update-now-warning-issued-to-all-iphone-users