Apple Seeds Second Betas of iOS 16.3 and iPadOS 16.3 to Developers

Apple today seeded the second betas of upcoming iOS 16.3 and iPadOS 16.3 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the new betas coming a month after the introduction of the first betas.

iOS 16
Registered developers can download the iOS 16‌.3 and iPadOS 16.3 profiles from the Apple Developer Center, and once installed, the beta will be available over the air.

iOS 16.3 and iPadOS 16.3 add support for physical Security Keys that can be used as added protection for an Apple ID. Any FIDO Certified physical security key can be linked to an ‌Apple ID‌ to be used for authentication when logging into a new device or otherwise accessing an ‌Apple ID‌.

Security Keys replace the digital verification codes sent to an Apple device when using an ‌Apple ID‌, and Apple says that the physical key provides strong protection against phishing and unauthorized account access. Note that two physical security keys are required when using this feature as there needs to be a backup in case one is lost. Losing a security key would revoke access to an ‌Apple ID‌, as Apple cannot override the protection.

In addition to Security Keys, the beta also adds more instruction for transferring music from an iPhone over to a HomePod using handoff. No other new features have been discovered at this time.

Related Forum: iOS 16

Popular Stories

Generic iOS 18 Feature Real Mock

iOS 18 Available Now With These 8 New Features For Your iPhone

Sunday September 15, 2024 10:09 am PDT by
Following over three months of beta testing, iOS 18 was finally widely released to the public on Monday, September 16. The update is available in the Settings app under General → Software Update on the iPhone XS and newer. Below, we have highlighted eight key new features included in iOS 18, and Apple shared a complete list of new features and changes last week. Note that Apple...
iOS 18 Apple Account Name Feature 2

RIP, Apple ID

Tuesday September 17, 2024 3:18 pm PDT by
The "Apple ID" era is officially over. The transition from "Apple ID" to "Apple Account" went from a rumor to an official announcement to something that has now been fully completed. As of this week, the account.apple.com website is fully updated with Apple Account branding. "Apple ID is now Apple Account," the page says. "You can still sign in with the same email address or phone...
M4 Mac mini Black Ortho Cooler

Apple Leaks New Mac Mini With 5 USB-C Ports

Monday September 16, 2024 11:40 am PDT by
Apple has seemingly leaked the rumored next-generation Mac mini with five USB-C ports, according to a code change within Apple software that was discovered today by MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris. The code refers to an unreleased Mac mini model with an Apple silicon chip and five ports, which lines up with a previous report from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman that said the next Mac mini will be ...
m4 iPad Pro Horizontal Feature Purple and Blue

Apple Pulls iPadOS 18 for M4 iPad Pro After Bricking Complaints [Updated]

Tuesday September 17, 2024 11:24 am PDT by
Apple stopped signing the iPadOS 18 update for the M4 iPad Pro models, which means the new software is no longer available to be downloaded and installed at the current time. The update appears to have been pulled following complaints from some iPad Pro owners, who found that the update bricked their devices. There are reports on Reddit from iPad Pro users who had an interruption in the...

Top Rated Comments

Bl0ckHe1d Avatar
22 months ago
Any fix to the Homekit and Matter nightmare?
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheYayAreaLiving ?️ Avatar
22 months ago
Ahhh! After 3 long weeks. It's finally here. Thank you! Rock n Roll iOS 16.3 Beta 2! ;)
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
fatTribble Avatar
22 months ago
Can’t say the features are useful to me, but hopefully 16.3 will fix some 16.2 sluggishness.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hovscorpion12 Avatar
22 months ago
The security key feature is my most excited feature
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Realityck Avatar
22 months ago
Released today

* iOS 16.3 beta 2 (20D5035i) - January 10, 2023
* iPadOS 16.3 beta 2 (20D5035i) -January 10, 2023
* macOS 13.2 beta 2 (22D5038i) - January 10, 2023
* watchOS 9.3 beta 2 (20S5637h) - January 10, 2023
* tvOS 16.3 beta 2 (20K5637g) - January 10, 2023
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Realityck Avatar
22 months ago
Installing the iPadOS 16.3 beta 2 currently. Being this long a gap I expect some changes/fixes.

There are no new release notes for this beta 2 software update.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)