Apple Stops Signing iOS 17.2.1, Downgrading No Longer Possible - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Apple Stops Signing iOS 17.2.1, Downgrading No Longer Possible

by

Apple today stopped signing the iOS 17.2.1 update, preventing iPhone users from downgrading to that version of iOS going forward. iOS 17.2.1 is no longer being signed following the January 22 release of iOS 17.3, which introduced Stolen Device Protection for the iPhone and other changes.

iOS 17
It is not unusual that iOS 17.2.1 is no longer being signed. Apple routinely stops signing older versions of iOS after new releases in order to encourage customers to keep their operating systems up to date and to prevent users from downgrading to older, less secure versions of the iPhone operating system.

Along with iOS 17.2.1, Apple has stopped signing iPadOS 17.2 for the iPad, and the older 15.8 and 16.7.4 versions of iOS and iPadOS for devices unable to run iOS 17.

Apple is already testing iOS 17.4, a major update that is set to come out in March.

Popular Stories

Apple Logo Gradient 16x9 1

Apple Just Made an Extremely Rare Product Announcement

Thursday August 27, 2026 7:58 am PDT by
The new Mac mini and Mac Studio models unveiled by Apple this week are the company's first new Macs announced in August since 2020. It is extremely rare for Apple to announce new products of any kind in August, excluding smaller things like new color options and accessories. As mentioned, Apple's last notable August product announcement was in 2020, when it updated the 27-inch iMac and a...
Read Full Article
Apple Surprise Shine

Apple Event: Six New Products to Expect on September 9

Thursday August 27, 2026 8:00 am PDT by
Apple has announced that it will be holding an event on Wednesday, September 9 at 10 a.m. Pacific Time, with the company widely expected to unveil the iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max, its first-ever foldable iPhone, and more. Other products expected to be announced at the event include an Apple Watch Series 12 with a ceramic case option, an Apple Watch Ultra 4, AirPods 5 with and without...
Read Full Article • 55 comments
iPhone 18 Pro Dark Cherry Feature

iPhone 18 Pro Pre-Orders May Start at an Unusual Time

Friday August 28, 2026 8:17 am PDT by
Pre-orders of Apple's iPhone 18 Pro may not open until Saturday, September 12, a day later than the company's usual schedule, according to a new report. Apple is set to hold its annual iPhone event on Wednesday, September 9, where the iPhone 18 Pro models, its first-ever foldable iPhone, and the Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 are all expected to be announced. Under Apple's typical...
Read Full Article • 36 comments

Top Rated Comments

L
lkrupp
34 months ago

Ive never downgraded ios… i wonder what percentage of users do…
Almost no one
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Populus Avatar
Populus
34 months ago
I would have liked to install iOS/iPadOS 16.7.4 on my devices, but… my devices are able to run iOS/iPadOS 17, so Apple didn’t allow me to install those iOS/iPadOS 16 patched versions.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
A
AlastorKatriona
34 months ago

Ive never downgraded ios… i wonder what percentage of users do…
No one does, and I have no idea why Macrumors runs these articles as if its some kind of important PSA. No one cares. No one should care.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
CheffyDude Avatar
CheffyDude
34 months ago
Why not? We should be able to run whatever version of iOS we want.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
CheffyDude Avatar
CheffyDude
34 months ago

what if someone wanted to run a 12 year old version of iOS? Are the developers supposed to just perpetually provide security updates for prehistoric versions of iOS that are no longer optimized and lack several features?
Yes.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
1
1129846
34 months ago
Ive never downgraded ios… i wonder what percentage of users do…
Most users don’t. The biggest issue is for developers and development. The lack of signing older OS makes non upgraded phones and iPads very valuable as that is the only way to test on older os’s on physical devices.

General rule is app support 2 major versions so say we have a crash reports coming in from iOS 16. Testing on a physical iOS 16 device is very valuable. There are a lot of issues that only happen and can replicate on a physical device hence older OS are important.

It is developers that the lack of downgrading screws and it will make older non upgraded devices very valuable and we will murder someone who upgrades a test device that was set aside to not upgrade.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments