A malicious video link that when played in Safari causes iOS devices to crash has been discovered this morning.

Playing the MP4 video in question through Safari appears to have no effect at first, but gradually the operating system slows down before it freezes completely, after which only a hard reset will bring the device back to life. YouTube channel EverythingApplePro has posted a demonstration (i.e. not the original video) showing the exploit in action.

iOS safari video crash
The bug appears to affect iOS builds as far back as iOS 5, while iPhones running iOS 10.2 beta 3 are said to power off and show the spinning wheel indefinitely.

If you fall victim to the prank, you'll need to hard reboot to get your device working again. According to a Reddit post by user Riddle, currently the top level domains hosting the video appear to be vk.com and testtrial.site90.net, but bear in mind that the video could be hosted on other sites quite easily and that URL shorteners can mask the actual address you're being linked to.

This kind of prank isn't new. Three years ago, a text exploit made the rounds that caused both Mac and iOS devices to crash.

(Via 9to5Mac.)

Top Rated Comments

Scubaman Avatar
Scubaman
68 months ago
On my iPad 2 running iOS 10 this seems to be a feature. Not a problem...
You must have a pretty cool iPad2 if it's running ios10 as my iPad3 stopped being capable of upgrade at ios9!!
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
keysofanxiety Avatar
keysofanxiety
68 months ago
soo many bad news for apple..
It's just a software bug and it'll be patched accordingly. Nothing new either.

The bug appears to affect iOS builds as far back as iOS 5
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dugbug Avatar
dugbug
68 months ago
Why is this vulnerability called a prank? Sounds like a remote execution bug like Stage fright on Android.
Where do you see remote execution of code
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
C DM Avatar
C DM
68 months ago
Doesn't "hard reset" mean erase the device to factory settings? I think this just requires a "hard restart".
The terminology has been essentially corrupted through misuse by more and more over period of time. Kind of like "literally" has even been adjusted to mean the opposite of itself as well for similar reasons.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
joelypolly Avatar
joelypolly
68 months ago
Why is this vulnerability called a prank? Sounds like a remote execution bug like Stage fright on Android.
probably because it isn't remote execution at this stage if it only can crash a device
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
H.Finch Avatar
H.Finch
68 months ago
On my iPad 2 running iOS 10 this seems to be a feature. Not a problem...
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments

Popular Stories

intel vs m1 max chip purple

Benchmarks Confirm Intel's Latest Core i9 Chip Outperforms Apple's M1 Max With Several Caveats

Wednesday January 26, 2022 8:56 am PST by
Benchmark results have started to surface for MSI's new GE76 Raider, one of the first laptops to be powered by Intel's new 12th-generation Core i9 processor. Intel previously said that its new high-end Core i9 processor is faster than Apple's M1 Max chip in the 16-inch MacBook Pro and, as noted by Macworld, early Geekbench 5 results do appear to confirm this claim, but there are several...
Read Full Article • 296 comments
General Dropbox Feature

macOS 12.3 Will Include Cloud Storage Changes Affecting Dropbox and OneDrive

Tuesday January 25, 2022 3:31 pm PST by
Dropbox today announced that users who update to macOS 12.3 once that software version becomes available may temporarily encounter issues with opening online-only files in some third-party apps on their Mac. In a support document and an email to customers, Dropbox said it is actively working on full support for online-only files on macOS 12.3 and will begin rolling out an updated version of...
Read Full Article • 64 comments
Apple Watch Red Yellow Green Feature 1

Apple Launches Black Unity Braided Solo Loop With 'Unity Lights' Watch Face

Wednesday January 26, 2022 6:05 am PST by
Apple today announced the Black Unity Braided Solo Loop for the Apple Watch, as well as a new downloadable watch face, to celebrate Black History Month. Following the launch of the limited edition Black Unity Apple Watch Series 6 and Sport Band in 2021, Apple today launched the Black Unity Braided Solo Loop as part of its celebrations for Black History Month this year.Apple is launching a...
Read Full Article • 118 comments
ios 15

Apple Releases iOS 15.3 and iPadOS 15.3 With Fix for Safari Bug That Leaks Browsing Activity

Wednesday January 26, 2022 10:00 am PST by
Apple today released iOS 15.3 and iPadOS 15.3, the third major updates to the iOS and iPadOS 15 operating systems that were released in September 2021. iOS and iPadOS 15.3 come almost two weeks after the release of iOS and iPadOS 15.2.1, minor bug fix updates. The iOS 15.3 and iPadOS 15.3 updates can be downloaded for free and the software is available on all eligible devices over-the-air in ...
Read Full Article • 62 comments
iOS 15

Everything New in iOS 15.4 and iPadOS 15.4: Face ID With a Mask, Emojis, Apple Card Widget, Universal Control and More

Thursday January 27, 2022 12:08 pm PST by
Apple today seeded the first betas of iOS 15.4, iPadOS 15.4 to developers for testing purposes, adding a slew of new features to the latest iOS operating systems. iOS 15.4 is the biggest update that we've had to iOS 15 to date, and it brings Universal Control, Face ID with a mask, new emojis, and tons more. Face ID With a Mask With iOS 15.4, there is now an option to unlock your iPhone...
Read Full Article • 78 comments
mobeewave

Upcoming iOS Update Will Allow iPhones to Accept Credit Cards Directly Using NFC

Wednesday January 26, 2022 6:00 pm PST by
Apple is working on a new payments service that will allow iPhones to accept payments directly on device with no additional hardware, reports Bloomberg. Right now, iPhones can accept credit cards with add-ons like the Square Reader, but Apple's new technology will eliminate the need for a third-party product. Individuals and small businesses will be able to accept payments with the tap of a...
Read Full Article • 144 comments
macOS Monterey on MBP Feature

Apple Releases macOS Monterey 12.2 With Safari Vulnerability Fix

Wednesday January 26, 2022 10:19 am PST by
Apple today released macOS Monterey 12.2, the second major update to the macOS Monterey update that launched in October. macOS Monterey 12.2 comes over a month after the release of the 12.1 update, which brought SharePlay support. The ‌‌‌macOS Monterey 12.2‌‌ update can be downloaded on all eligible Macs using the Software Update section of System Preferences. Apple has also...
Read Full Article • 197 comments