close
    • chevron_right

      Apple patches “clickless” 0-day image processing vulnerability in iOS, macOS

      news.movim.eu / ArsTechnica · Thursday, 7 September, 2023 - 22:47

    Apple patches “clickless” 0-day image processing vulnerability in iOS, macOS

    Enlarge (credit: Apple)

    Apple has released security updates for iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and watchOS today to fix actively exploited zero-day security flaws that can be used to install malware via a "maliciously crafted image" or attachment. The iOS 16.6.1, iPadOS 16.6.1, macOS 13.5.2, and watchOS 9.6.2 updates patch the flaws across all of Apple's platforms. As of this writing, no updates have been released for older versions like iOS 15 or macOS 12.

    The CVE-2023-41064 and CVE-2023-41061 flaws were reported by the Citizen Lab at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy at the University of Toronto. Also dubbed "BLASTPASS," Citizen Lab says that the bugs are serious because they can be exploited just by loading an image or attachment, which happens regularly in Safari, Messages, WhatsApp, and other first- and third-party apps. These bugs are also called "zero-click" or "clickless" vulnerabilities.

    Citizen Lab also said that the BLASTPASS bug was "being used to deliver NSO Group’s Pegasus mercenary spyware ," the latest in a long line of similar exploits that have been used to infect fully patched iOS and Android devices.

    Read 3 remaining paragraphs | Comments

    • chevron_right

      Next-gen Apple Watch will reportedly get its first major CPU upgrade in years

      news.movim.eu / ArsTechnica · Monday, 8 May, 2023 - 20:31

    The Apple Watch Series 7, which uses a chip that is very similar to its predecessor (the Series 6) and its successor (the Series 8).

    Enlarge / The Apple Watch Series 7, which uses a chip that is very similar to its predecessor (the Series 6) and its successor (the Series 8). (credit: Corey Gaskin)

    Technically, each year's Apple Watch includes a processor upgrade. The Apple Watch Series 8 comes with an Apple S8 processor, which is a larger number than the S7 SoC that came with the Series 7 or the S6 that came with the Series 6.

    However, none of those processors has actually provided much by way of a performance upgrade; they all seem to use an identical processor with a CPU architecture based on the Apple 13 (presumably the small, energy-efficient cores) and a 7 nm manufacturing process from TSMC.

    Bloomberg's Mark Gurman ( via MacRumors ) says this year will be different. He says the next-generation chip (presumably the Apple S9) will be a more substantial upgrade than the last few, with a new processor based on the same architecture used in Apple's newer A15 chip. And if the CPU is changing, Apple could also take the opportunity to upgrade the manufacturing process, potentially providing a boost in battery life (and other features) along with an increase in speed.

    Read 2 remaining paragraphs | Comments

    • chevron_right

      Apple rolls out iOS 16.4 and macOS Ventura 13.3 with new emoji and features

      news.movim.eu / ArsTechnica · Monday, 27 March, 2023 - 19:33

    The 2021, 24-inch iMac with Apple's M1.

    Enlarge / The 2021, 24-inch iMac with Apple's M1. (credit: Samuel Axon)

    Apple released new updates for most of its software platforms today, including macOS Ventura 13.3, iOS 16.4, iPadOS 16.4, tvOS 16.4, and watchOS 9.4.

    These are all feature updates, meaning they actually add new functionality in addition to fixing bugs or addressing security vulnerabilities.

    iOS and iPadOS 16.4 add a number of minor features. The headliner is (of course) 21 new emojis, like new heart colors, additional animals, and a shaking head. Beyond that, though, Apple says you'll see improved voice isolation on phone calls, support for notifications from web apps that have been added to your phone's home screen, new ways to weed out duplicates in your Photos library, and a number of bug fixes.

    Read 4 remaining paragraphs | Comments

    • chevron_right

      iOS 14.4 and iPadOS 14.4 adds new camera features, fixes bunches of bugs

      Samuel Axon · news.movim.eu / ArsTechnica · Tuesday, 26 January, 2021 - 20:03

    The 2020 iPad Air—one of several devices supported by today

    Enlarge / The 2020 iPad Air—one of several devices supported by today's new software releases. (credit: Samuel Axon )

    Today, Apple began rolling out iOS 14.4 and iPadOS 14.4 to supported iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices. The company also pushed watchOS 7.3 to Apple Watches and tvOS 14.4 to Apple TVs.

    iOS 14.4/iPadOS 14.4 is a somewhat small feature update. New additions in the release notes include the ability to read smaller QR codes with the iPhone cameras, notifications to tell users "when the camera of your iPhone is unable to be verified as a new, genuine Apple camera," and a number of bug fixes.

    Here are Apple's full iOS 14.4 release notes:

    Read 6 remaining paragraphs | Comments

    index?i=VEQTWUdGyNk:ZkX8w1jcvs0:V_sGLiPBpWUindex?i=VEQTWUdGyNk:ZkX8w1jcvs0:F7zBnMyn0Loindex?d=qj6IDK7rITsindex?d=yIl2AUoC8zA
    • chevron_right

      Apple updates its App Store policies to combat abuse, spam, and misinformation

      Samuel Axon · news.movim.eu / ArsTechnica · Friday, 6 March, 2020 - 20:55

    The front of the 2019 iPad Air

    Enlarge / The front of the 2019 iPad Air. (credit: Samuel Axon)

    Earlier this week, Apple notified app developers of a revised set of App Store review guidelines—the rules by which Apple curates its iOS/iPadOS, tvOS, watchOS, and macOS App Stores.

    Among many other things, the revised rules expand the definition of what constitutes a spam app and also clarify that developers are able to use push notifications to serve ads to users (provided users have explicitly opt in to them) and limit submissions of certain types apps to trusted organizations in regulated or sensitive industries.

    The most controversial of these changes has been the clear statement that developers can serve ads to users via push notifications. At one point in the past, Apple's guidelines stated that push notifications "should not be used for advertising, promotions, or direct marketing purposes or to send sensitive personal or confidential information." Now the guidelines state:

    Read 7 remaining paragraphs | Comments

    index?i=CRukGD6F22o:jlv2eq5WqWA:V_sGLiPBpWUindex?i=CRukGD6F22o:jlv2eq5WqWA:F7zBnMyn0Loindex?d=qj6IDK7rITsindex?d=yIl2AUoC8zA