Apple iOS 10.2.1 – Should You Upgrade and What’s Included?
This minor update to the iPad and iPhone operating systems includes security fixes and performance improvements. Read more for details.
Today, Apple released the latest point update to its mobile operating system, iOS 10.2.1. The minor update is available for some Apple devices such as the iPhone and iPad. As usual, the new update is a mixed bag of improved functionality and bug fixes. The update follows iOS 10.1, which was released in October 2016 and iOS 10.2, which was released in December 2016. A majority of bug fixes in this release primarily affect Webkit; the web browser engine used by the Safari web browser. Other components such as Auto Unlock, Contacts, Kernel, libarchive, and Wi-Fi also received updates.
Should You Upgrade Your iPad or iPhone to iOS 10.2.1?
The 10.2.1 update is relatively small, coming in at 72 Mbs. Users can download the latest iOS update by launching Settings > General > Software Update. This took about 15 minutes to download and install on an iPhone 6s. Although this is a recommended update, make sure you perform a backup just in case. I personally like waiting a bit just to see if early adopters come across any show-stoppers. Apple’s mobile OS has become just as complex and targeted as its desktop sibling, and the company throws a lot of human resources into maintaining it. That said, there is always a chance of something going wrong.
Here is a detailed list of what’s new and fixed in iOS 10.2.1.
Auto Unlock
Available for: iPhone 5 and later, iPad 4th generation and later, iPod touch 6th generation and later
Impact: Auto Unlock may unlock when Apple Watch is off the user’s wrist
Description: A logic issue was addressed through improved state management.
CVE-2017-2352: Ashley Fernandez of raptAware Pty Ltd
Contacts
Available for: iPhone 5 and later, iPad 4th generation and later, iPod touch 6th generation and later
Impact: Processing a maliciously crafted contact card may lead to unexpected application termination
Description: An input validation issue existed in the parsing of contact cards. This issue was addressed through improved input validation.
CVE-2017-2368: Vincent Desmurs (vincedes3)
Kernel
Available for: iPhone 5 and later, iPad 4th generation and later, iPod touch 6th generation and later
Impact: An application may be able to execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges
Description: A buffer overflow issue was addressed through improved memory handling.
CVE-2017-2370: Ian Beer of Google Project Zero
Kernel
Available for: iPhone 5 and later, iPad 4th generation and later, iPod touch 6th generation and later
Impact: An application may be able to execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges
Description: A use after free issue was addressed through improved memory management.
CVE-2017-2360: Ian Beer of Google Project Zero
libarchive
Available for: iPhone 5 and later, iPad 4th generation and later, iPod touch 6th generation and later
Impact: Unpacking a maliciously crafted archive may lead to arbitrary code execution
Description: A buffer overflow issue was addressed through improved memory handling.
CVE-2016-8687: Agostino Sarubbo of Gentoo
WebKit
Available for: iPhone 5 and later, iPad 4th generation and later, iPod touch 6th generation and later
Impact: Processing maliciously crafted web content may exfiltrate data cross-origin
Description: A prototype access issue was addressed through improved exception handling.
CVE-2017-2350: Gareth Heyes of Portswigger Web Security
WebKit
Available for: iPhone 5 and later, iPad 4th generation and later, iPod touch 6th generation and later
Impact: Processing maliciously crafted web content may lead to arbitrary code execution
Description: Multiple memory corruption issues were addressed through improved memory handling.
CVE-2017-2354: Neymar of Tencent’s Xuanwu Lab (tencent.com) working with Trend Micro’s Zero Day Initiative
CVE-2017-2362: Ivan Fratric of Google Project Zero
CVE-2017-2373: Ivan Fratric of Google Project Zero
WebKit
Available for: iPhone 5 and later, iPad 4th generation and later, iPod touch 6th generation and later
Impact: Processing maliciously crafted web content may lead to arbitrary code execution
Description: A memory initialization issue was addressed through improved memory handling.
CVE-2017-2355: Team Pangu and lokihardt at PwnFest 2016
WebKit
Available for: iPhone 5 and later, iPad 4th generation and later, iPod touch 6th generation and later
Impact: Processing maliciously crafted web content may lead to arbitrary code execution
Description: Multiple memory corruption issues were addressed through improved input validation.
CVE-2017-2356: Team Pangu and lokihardt at PwnFest 2016
CVE-2017-2369: Ivan Fratric of Google Project Zero
CVE-2017-2366: Kai Kang of Tencent’s Xuanwu Lab (tencent.com)
WebKit
Available for: iPhone 5 and later, iPad 4th generation and later, iPod touch 6th generation and later
Impact: Processing maliciously crafted web content may exfiltrate data cross-origin
Description: A validation issue existed in the handling of page loading. This issue was addressed through improved logic.
CVE-2017-2363: lokihardt of Google Project Zero
CVE-2017-2364: lokihardt of Google Project Zero
WebKit
Available for: iPhone 5 and later, iPad 4th generation and later, iPod touch 6th generation and later
Impact: A malicious website can open popups
Description: An issue existed in the handling of blocking popups. This was addressed through improved input validation.
CVE-2017-2371: lokihardt of Google Project Zero
WebKit
Available for: iPhone 5 and later, iPad 4th generation and later, iPod touch 6th generation and later
Impact: Processing maliciously crafted web content may exfiltrate data cross-origin
Description: A validation issue existed in the handling of variable handling. This issue was addressed through improved validation.
CVE-2017-2365: lokihardt of Google Project Zero
WiFi
Available for: iPhone 5 and later, iPad 4th generation and later, iPod touch 6th generation and later
Impact: An activation-locked device can be manipulated to briefly present the home screen
Description: An issue existed with handling user input that caused a device to present the home screen even when activation locked. This was addressed through improved input validation.
CVE-2017-2351: Sriram (@Sri_Hxor) of Primefort Pvt. Ltd., Hemanth Joseph
Conclusion
There is nothing particularly dramatic or must-have in a minor point update such as iOS 10.2.1, but I think that’s a good thing. Since becoming an iPhone user, I have appreciated the stability of the platform, especially the consistency in regard to performance with each update. That said, you won’t regret waiting it out a bit, and see how fellow users handle the update before taking the plunge yourself.
Editor’s note: It’s worth noting that some of these security fixes also apply to Apple Watch, macOS, and tvOS. So, if you want to cover all your bases, update those devices, too.
If you do jump on the update, let us know what you think of it in the comments. Any hidden gems, issues, or performance improvements? We would love to know.
