Apple iOS 18.3.1: An Urgent Security Update
On February 11, 2025, Apple released iOS 18.3.1—a rapid, emergency update aimed at patching a dangerous vulnerability that had already been exploited in real-life attacks. This isn’t a routine update with a batch of minor bug fixes; rather, it addresses a single, critical flaw that could allow a physical attacker to disable USB Restricted Mode on a locked device. --- Understanding the Critical Vulnerability What’s the Issue? At the heart of the matter is a security weakness in the Accessibility feature of iOS. Tracked as CVE-2025-24200, the vulnerability allows an attacker with physical access to a device to disable USB Restricted Mode—a core safeguard designed to protect sensitive data. Apple’s support page noted, “Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been exploited in an extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals.” The fact that the details are being tightly controlled only underlines the severity of the issue....