Apple releases iOS 11.4.1 with security against unlock tools

Apple has released iOS version 11.4.1. The update of the operating system has as the most important addition the USB restricted mode, in which the Lightning port can only be used for charging the battery after an hour.

With this USB restricted mode, which was already included in the beta version of iOS 12 and iOS 11.4.1, Apple’s iPhones and iPads get a function that should protect the devices against a range of unlocking tools, which are used, for example, by law enforcement agencies.

This new security mode means that an iPhone must be unlocked for use with USB accessories. When the mode is enabled, the phone will no longer allow data connection through the Lighting port if it was last unlocked more than an hour ago.

Otherwise, iOS 11.4.1 fixes a bug for the Find My Airpods feature and improves syncing with Exchange accounts. At the end of May, Apple already released iOS 11.4, which added support for Airplay 2, Apple’s wireless audio protocol. This version of iOS also introduced the iMessages in iCloud feature, which saves all messages in iCloud and instantly syncs between all iCloud devices.