After releasing iOS version 16.3.1 to the public, Apple stopped signing version 16.3 making it impossible to downgrade for those who have already updated their devices to this latest stable version. Even those who have installed and are testing version 16.4, of which the first beta was released last week, will eventually be able to downgrade only to version 16.3.1. At the beginning of February, we recall, Apple had already stopped signing iOS 16.2 blocking the downgrade from 16.3.
Signature blocking is done by Apple to try to ensure greater security preventing access to unfixed bugs and vulnerabilities as well as preventing excessive fragmentation by trying to keep users on the most recent versions.
Restoring to previous versions of iOS is also blocked to avoid exploiting any vulnerabilities in order to “jailbreak” a device, a procedure that allows you to install third-party software and packages, not signed and authorized by Apple, as an alternative to those of the App Store.
iOS 16.3.1, according to what was reported in the changelog, fixed an issue that occurred with apps that use iCloud, a problem with requests for Find My via Siri that could not work and has been optimized on iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro incident detection.
Additionally, with iOS 16.3.1, new security patches have also arrived for iPhone users that fixed a few exploits including one that could allow an app to execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges. On the security content information page on its official website, Apple has published a detail of all the vulnerabilities fixed.
Interestingly, Apple has also updated the security page dedicated to iOS 16.3 with three new exploits that have been fixed. It’s unclear why they’re only now mentioned on this page though all of them were fixed anyway with iOS 16.3.1 which also fixed a security breach related to WebKit (the Safari web browser engine) that had been ” actively exploited”.
In addition to the stable versions, as mentioned, the first beta of iOS 16.4 was also released in recent days which changed the way betas will be managed in the future by abandoning the profile system. Also insert new emoji that further expand the vast list of those already present, push notifications for Safari (provided that the page is saved as a web app), and a new architecture for HomeKit.
