iOS 26.4.2 fixes an iPhone security flaw exploited by the FBI

• Apple has just patched an iPhone vulnerability that was likely used by the FBI to access Signal messages
• The update comes as part of iOS 26.4.2
• That's the only named fix included in the update

iOS 26.4.2 has landed, and while it doesn’t appear to bring much in the way of new features, you should absolutely install it anyway, as the one named fix it does have likely addresses a flaw that the FBI recently exploited.

Specifically, this update fixes a bug that meant “notifications marked for deletion could be unexpectedly retained on the device”, which sounds like it’s a direct response to the recent news that the FBI managed to retrieve Signal messages from someone’s phone, even with the app deleted and incoming messages set to disappear.

The bureau achieved this using the iPhone’s push notification database, which still stored notifications of incoming messages from the app.

Keeping your messages private

While Apple doesn’t go into detail here, it sounds like this update might prevent that from happening with notifications for deleted apps. Certainly, the timing of this update suggests it’s a response to the FBI’s actions.

But even if you think you’ll never be in a situation where law enforcement is trying to access your communications, it’s still probably worth downloading iOS 26.4.2 just to be on the safe side. It’s also possible that there are other fixes included, too, that haven’t been detailed.

You can head to Settings > General > Software Update to manually check for updates if you haven’t already received a notification about this one, and the same fix is available for iPads as part of iPadOS 26.4.2.

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