Bug in iOS 9 makes opening links in Safari impossible

A bug in iOS 9 prevents users from opening links with Safari. It is currently not entirely clear what is causing the problem. Apple customer service says the company is working on an update. It should be ready within a few days.

The problem has become more and more common in recent days and seems to mainly affect the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus on iOS 9.3, according to several posts on GoT, among others. However, a rarer response here and there also indicates that the problem also occurs on earlier versions of iOS 9 and with devices like iPads. While Apple is working on a fix for the issue, the company is proposing that users disable JavaScript as a workaround. This can be done by navigating to ‘settings’, ‘Safari’ and finally ‘advanced’. Websites that make strong use of JavaScript will of course still not work.

While the root cause of the issue is not known, it seems clear that users will not be able to get rid of it once they encounter it. For example, the editors of 9to5Mac indicate that the problem started with one of their devices after installing the Booking.com app. However, uninstalling and restarting the device did not resolve the issue. A user on the Apple forum reports that even a factory reset did not fix the problem. So it is advisable for users who are not affected by the bug not to install new apps temporarily. The Booking.com app is not the only application that causes the problem to occur.

Multiple users report that iOS logs indicate that the Shared Web Credentials Daemon is constantly crashing when opening Safari links on devices with the issue. Shared Web Credentials is a part of iOS that ensures that users don’t have to log in to a service twice when they go from its iOS app to the website, for example. Thus, the bug may occur when a user has installed apps that use it.