New Delhi: Aiming to fix vulnerabilities and a potential hole in its operating system's security that relates to Homekit, Apple's Siri-powered smart home platform, Apple is rolling out iOS and iPadOS updates for iPhone and iPad users. The patch being rolled out to fix these issues is 15.2.1 and it is also going to fix the patch known as a denial-of-service vulnerability, the media has reported. Security researcher Trevor Spiniolas has been credited for highlighting the bug.
The Homekit bug, if exploited, could cause iPhones and iPads to encounter issues such as endless crashing, rebooting and freezing.
"iOS 15.2.1 and iPadOS 15.2.1... Available for: iPhone 6s and later, iPad Pro (all models), iPad Air 2 and later, iPad 5th generation and later, iPad mini 4 and later, and iPod touch (7th generation) Impact: Processing a maliciously crafted HomeKit accessory name may cause a denial of service," Apple wrote on its support page on Thursday.
"Description: A resource exhaustion issue was addressed with improved input validation," the company added on the support page.
The iPadOS 15.2.1 patch also carries the fix that can cause Messages to not load images sent using an iCloud link.
How to get the 15.2.1 patch for iPadOS and iOS
iPhone and iPad users who intend to install the 15.2.1 patch can install the update by going to "Settings" from their device's home screen then from Settings, navigate to "General," and then click on "Software Update."
Meanwhile, earlier in December, Apple had released the latest update to its iOS, the iOS 15.2 and the update brought with it new features like MacroControl for the iPhone 13 and a new Apple Music tier for all the iPhone users as well as an opt-in App Privacy Report and Apple Music Voice Plan.