When you download iOS 14.5 in the spring, you will get access to a wealth of new functions and possibilities. However, things are changing behind the scenes as iOS 14.5 fights fights against zero-click exploitation; Apple has also ensured that the operating system is again a bit more secure. In this case it means that it is more difficult for hackers to use so-called zero-click exploits.
iOS 14.5 fights against zero-click exploitation
This is evident from a message from the website Motherboard. The editorial team speaks to several security experts who believe that exploiting zero-click leaks will be a lot more difficult. Such leaks ensure that malicious parties can take over an iPhone without the owner having to take any action. Think, for example, of opening a malicious website or file.
The changes are related to technology called Pointer Authentication Codes. That’s a cryptographic security feature that Apple has been using since 2018. With the release of iOS 14.5, the iPhone maker expands those capabilities with ISA pointers.
ISA pointers tell programs on iOS which code to use when in use. Until now, that function was not yet provided with cryptography, but that will soon change. As a result, users are ultimately better protected.
A security researcher tells Motherboard that this is a major concern for hackers, as some techniques used for hacking are now completely unusable. Nevertheless, this does not mean that zero-click attacks will disappear completely, thinks jailbreak developer Jamie Bishop. What happens earlier is that it becomes a lot more expensive for everyone to carry out such attacks. There are always bugs or other problems that can eventually be exploited.
Apple has confirmed to the website that it is indeed becoming much more difficult for attackers to use zero-clicks exploits. There is no precise release date for iOS 14.5 yet.
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