iOS Device Owners Do Not Ignore iOS 9.2.1 Update

Apple has released iOS 9.2.1 three days back. iOS 9.2.1 is a minor update for iOS 9.2 as clear from its version number. It does not included any major feature changes or enhancements. The official release notes only reference bug fixes, security improvements, and an MDM server issue fix. Normally, most iOS users skip small minor updates but we will highly recommend not to skip iOS 9.2.1. We highly recommend all iOS device (iPhone, iPad or iPod touch) owners running iOS 9 to update to iOS 9.2.1 asap.

Why You Should Not Ignore iOS 9.2.1 Update?

The latest iOS 9.2.1 update fixes a three-year old cookie theft bug (CVE-2016-1730). Cookies (also known as web cookie, Internet cookie, or browser cookie) are small data files that stores various types of data, and are placed on your computer or mobile device by websites you visit. SkyCure, which reported the issue to Apple on June 3, 2013, released a blog post this week detailing their findings about the cookie theft bug.

The cookie theft bug can be exploited by hackers to impersonate users and steal sensitive information. They can create a malicious public Wi-Fi network to steal cookies from your iOS devices. Once the network is created, the hackers wait for compromised users to join the network. They then redirects those unsuspecting users to a malicious webpage which is designed to steal their user credentials. From there, the hackers can open the embedded browser screen you would see when joining a public Wi-Fi network, load content into a user’s phone and execute it without them knowing.

This update does not address iOS frozen battery charge levels issue in iPhone which is yet to be fixed by Apple. The frozen battery charge level issue may get fixed in the next major iOS 9.3 release but that is just a speculation.

In the meantime, Apple does offer this temporary fix for users hit by the battery bug:

1. Restart your iPhone.
2. Go to Settings > General > Date & Time and make sure that Set Automatically is turned on.
3. If this happens again and you didn’t change the time or time zone on your device, contact Apple Support.

The release is a great reminder for all those users who generally skips minor updates. You should always install updates when they become available. Sometimes frequent updates may seem annoying and unimportant, but as you can see with iOS 9.2.1 update is, they are really important.

How To Install iOS 9.2.1 Update On Your iOS Device?

You can update your iOS by opening Settings > Under General, tap on Software update. Wait for your device to search for latest update. Once you receive the update notification, tap on Download and Install.

Agree to the terms and conditions and wait for the download to get complete. Make sure your device is charged or is attached to the charger before applying the update.