Have iPhone 13, iPhone 14? Beware! This iOS 16.1 vulnerability puts you at risk

Apple devices are considered some of the safest devices in the market when it comes to cybersecurity. Hackers usually have a very tough time when trying to crack through Apple iOS. However, a recent discovery of vulnerabilities puts Apple iOS and iPadOS at risk. Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) recently revealed that it had discovered vulnerabilities in iOS and iPadOS which could give attackers access to sensitive information and more.

CERT-In issued an advisory on Wednesday stating that the vulnerability, termed as “'CVE-2022-42827" affects iOS 16.1, firmware prior to iOS 16.0.3 and iPadOS prior to 16. The cybersecurity watchdog also released a list of affected devices which included Apple iPhone 8 and later iPad Pro cellular models, iPad Air 3rd generation and later, iPad 5th generation and later and iPad mini 5th generation and later.

The vulnerability arises due to improper security restrictions in Apple’s AppleMobileFileIntegrity component. According to the official release, “A remote attacker could exploit these vulnerabilities by persuading the victim to open a specially crafted file or application.”

“Successful exploitation of these vulnerabilities could allow the attacker to gain access to sensitive information, execute arbitrary code, spoofing of the interface address, or denial of service conditions on the targeted system,” it further said.

Coincidently, CERT-In also revealed vulnerabilities in Apple’s Safari browser on the same day. The vulnerabilities were found in Safari present on macOS Big Sur and macOS Monterey which could allow an attacker to spoof URLs, gain access to sensitive information and execute arbitrary code on the target system.

What can iPhone, iPad users do?

CERT-In has warned users that vulnerability is being exploited in the wild. Users are advised to apply software patches urgently. Apple regularly pushes out updates bringing new features to the public as well as improving its security restrictions and patch vulnerabilities. Therefore, if you’re on the same firmware as revealed above, you should immediately update your iPhone or iPad to the latest software version.