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iOS 16.6 fixes urgent iPhone security flaws - update your device immediately

The latest iPhone update contains patches for over two dozen security issues, including two that are currently being exploited by hackers.
Written by Adrian Kingsley-Hughes, Senior Contributing Editor
Tapping on interactive widgets on iOS 17 on an iPhone.

iOS 16.6 update.

June Wan/ZDNET

Another day, another iOS update for iPhones. This latest one -- iOS 16.6 -- patches a massive 25 security flaws.

A complete list of the vulnerabilities patched by iOS 16.6 is detailed here.

Also: This powerful app tells you everything about your iPhone, iPad, or MacBook's battery

It's been a busy few weeks for iPhone updates, with the iOS 16.6 update coming less than two weeks after the release of iOS 16.5.1 (c) Rapid Security Response Update, which itself came a few days after iOS 16.5.1 (a) was pulled because it broke the Safari browser when used to visit websites like Facebook, Instagram, and Zoom.

Released alongside iOS 16.6 for the iPhone is iPadOS 16.6 for the iPad, iOS 15.7.8 and iPadOS 15.7.8 for older devices that can't run iOS 16, tvOS, WatchOS, and a flurry of updates for various flavors of MacOS.

Even with automatic iOS updates enabled, it can still take a few days for the update to be installed. My advice is to take charge of the process and manually install iOS 16.6. To do this, tap on Settings then General > Software Update. Then, tap Download and Install to kick off the update and keep your iPhone safe.

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