Following our report that Apple is internally testing iOS 18.2.1 for the iPhone, an anonymous social media account with a proven track record of sharing iOS-related information has revealed the upcoming software update's build number: 22C161.
With the build number now known, the update is now confirmed.
When the anonymous account shares a build number for an upcoming iOS version, the update is usually released no more than a week later. However, given it is currently the holiday season, it could take longer for the update to be released. We continue to respect the account's request that we not link to their social media posts.
iOS 18.2.1 should be a minor update that fixes bugs and/or addresses security vulnerabilities, but it is unclear which specific issues might be resolved. There are not any critical, widespread bugs that we know about at this particular time, but Apple has obviously identified various bugs and/or security vulnerabilities that it wants to patch ahead of iOS 18.3.
Apple began testing iOS 18.3 with developers and public beta testers earlier this month. That update is likely to be released to all users in January or early February, and only minor changes have been discovered in it so far.
