Apple Stops Signing iOS 14.4.2 After Releasing iOS 14.5.1 With Fix for Actively Exploited Security Issues

Monday May 3, 2021 1:25 pm PDT by Eric Slivka

Following today's release of iOS 14.5.1 and last week's release of iOS 14.5, Apple has stopped signing iOS 14.4.2, the previously available version of iOS 14 released on March 26. With iOS 14.4.2 no longer being signed, it is not possible to downgrade to iOS 14.4.2 from iOS 14.5 or iOS 14.5.1 if you've already updated your iPhone or iPad.

Apple routinely stops signing older versions of software updates after new releases come out in order to encourage customers to keep their operating systems up to date.

iOS 14.4.2 was a security update that addressed a vulnerability where processing maliciously crafted web content could lead to universal cross-site scripting. iOS 14.5 released last week addressed a number of security issues, and today's release of iOS 14.5.1 addresses another pair of WebKit issues that may have been actively exploited, so those who have not yet updated should do so.

Top Rated Comments

Populus

6 days ago at 01:37 pm

These articles don’t need to exist.

I disagree, I appreciate to know when I can downgrade or not.

Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)

now i see it

6 days ago at 02:24 pm

Months and months of iOS 14.5 betas totaling six - then when it finally releases they've got to scramble to fix a security flaw a week later

Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Jack Neill

6 days ago at 02:29 pm

I just downed a iPhone 8 to 14.4.2 yesterday because of some issues I was having. Phew just made it.

Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)

BaltimoreMediaBlog

6 days ago at 08:11 pm

This is another thing that should be dragged to court, OS downgrade limitations.

I totally agree. I've been saying this for years. The IOS 10 to 11 upgrade cost me nearly 50 free 32 bit games, and there was no way to go back and because Apple forced the upgrade on me as my iPhone was in repair at Apple. Basically, they damaged the unit in my opinion. This is one thing that should be a class action lawsuit that rarely anyone ever mentions. Oh, of course Apple did return my iPhone in full working condition as they call it, but not in the condition I sent it to them, but with only half of my apps functional.

Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

sparkinstx

6 days ago at 01:43 pm

I haven't seen any news about it, but WatchOS 7.4.1 was released today. I'm installing it now.

Update: Build is 18T201. Mine is a Series 4.

Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

doboy

6 days ago at 03:37 pm

wondering how restore from backup works in this instance. i had a brand new 2020 iPad pro that i returned after learning of the new M1 model. It was not yet on 14.5 when I returned it, so presumably it was on 14.4.2 when I last did an icloud backup before returning it. When receive my new iPad pro, does restore from backup also attempt to install an older SW version, or is it just profile, settings, apps, etc?

No it'll just load your data on top of whatever iOS it comes with.

Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Read All Comments

Top Stories

Analytics Suggest 96% of Users Leave App Tracking Disabled in iOS 14.5

Friday May 7, 2021 1:51 am PDT by Tim Hardwick

An early look at an ongoing analysis of Apple's App Tracking Transparency suggests that the vast majority of iPhone users are leaving app tracking disabled since the feature went live on April 26 with the release of iOS 14.5. According to the latest data from analytics firm Flurry, just 4% of iPhone users in the U.S. have actively chosen to opt into app tracking after updating their device...

Read Full Article • 221 comments

Prosser: Next MacBook Air Could Come in Colors Similar to iMac

Friday May 7, 2021 6:55 am PDT by Sami Fathi

According to Apple leaker Jon Prosser, Apple's upcoming release of the MacBook Air will feature various colors, similar to the colors in the newly released 24-inch iMac. In the latest video of his YouTube channel Front Page Tech, Prosser says the same source who accurately provided him information on the first Apple silicon iMac coming in colors has told him that he recently saw a prototype...

Read Full Article • 341 comments

Snapchat Rolls Out Dark Mode on iOS

Wednesday May 5, 2021 1:17 am PDT by Sami Fathi

Nearly two years following the release of iOS and iPadOS 13, which included native, built-in, and systemwide dark mode, Snapchat, one of the world's most prominent social media networks, has finally rolled out a dark mode theme for iOS users. Snapchat began testing a dark mode theme of its app design late last year with a small group of iOS users. Now, Snapchat says that as of this week, it...

Read Full Article • 19 comments

Tile to Leverage Amazon Echo and Ring Devices to Better Compete With AirTags

Friday May 7, 2021 2:07 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Amazon today announced that it is teaming up with Tile to add Amazon Sidewalk integration to Tile's Bluetooth trackers. Amazon Sidewalk, for those unfamiliar, is a network of Amazon Bluetooth devices that's designed to improve the connectivity of devices like the Ring and Amazon Echo. Tile will now be joining Amazon Sidewalk, and through this integration, Amazon Echo and Ring devices will be ...

Read Full Article • 164 comments

Tile CEO: 'We Welcome Competition From Apple, But We Think It Needs to Be Fair'

Tuesday May 4, 2021 9:51 am PDT by Juli Clover

Just after Apple announced its AirTags, Tile CEO CJ Prober relayed his concerns about competing with Apple in the tracking space, and said that Tile would ask Congress to investigate Apple's business practices specific to Find My and item trackers. Prober this week did an interview with Bloomberg, where he further expanded on Tile's complaints about Apple and why he feels that Tile is...

Read Full Article • 453 comments

AirTag Anti-Stalking Measures 'Just Aren't Sufficient' Says Washington Post Report

Wednesday May 5, 2021 6:03 pm PDT by Juli Clover

The safeguards that Apple built into AirTags to prevent them from being used to track someone "just aren't sufficient," The Washington Post's Geoffrey Fowler said today in a report investigating how AirTags can be used for covert stalking. Fowler planted an AirTag on himself and teamed up with a colleague to be pretend stalked, and he came to the conclusion that the AirTags are a "new means...

Read Full Article • 416 comments

Signal Shares the Instagram Ads Facebook Doesn't Want You to See

Wednesday May 5, 2021 1:29 am PDT by Tim Hardwick

Encrypted messaging app Signal has had a series of Instagram ads blocked from the social media platform, after it attempted to show users how much data the Facebook-owned company collects about them and how it's used to push targeted ads. In a blog post, Signal described how it generated the ads to show users why they were seeing them, simply by declaring upfront the information that the...

Read Full Article • 102 comments

Epic CEO Tim Sweeney Admits App Store's 30% Cut Is Similar to Consoles, Would Have Accepted Special Deal With Apple

Tuesday May 4, 2021 1:54 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Apple's legal battle with Epic Games is continuing on, and during the second day of the trial, Epic Games' CEO Tim Sweeney continued his testimony against Apple. Sweeney was grilled by Apple's lawyers, and made several points seemingly favorable to Apple. In addition to mentioning how he prefers Apple's iPhone and values Apple's privacy policies that he's aiming to dismantle, Sweeney...

Read Full Article • 210 comments

Apple Begins Transition to Randomized Serial Numbers With Purple iPhone 12

Wednesday May 5, 2021 9:17 am PDT by Joe Rossignol

MacRumors previously reported about Apple's plan to switch to randomized serial numbers for future products starting in early 2021, and this transition has now started with the new purple iPhone 12 model in multiple countries. With assistance from Aaron Zollo, host of the YouTube channel ZolloTech, we can confirm that the purple iPhone 12 released last month has a new 10-character serial...

Read Full Article • 82 comments

AirTag Precision Finding Interface Includes Hidden 'Developer Mode'

Thursday May 6, 2021 1:32 am PDT by Tim Hardwick

A frustrated AirTag owner has inadvertently discovered the existence of a hidden "developer mode" in the on-screen interface that Find My displays when the Precision Finding feature is activated to help locate one of Apple's item trackers. Precision Finding is a feature that provides users with specific on-screen directions for finding a nearby AirTag. iPhones with a U1 chip, which includes ...

Read Full Article • 53 comments