Discussion
About the security content of iOS 15.8.7 and iPadOS 15.8.7
behnamoh: Am I supposed to be impressed by this? This is part of the Apple experience: long-term updates in exchange for absurdly high markups up-front. I'd be impressed if the markup got lowered and iDevices still got such updates, but that's not happening.
nativeit: The bar has become incredibly low, it’s true. I could argue that’s all the more reason for recognizing when these monoliths do the right thing, but I would probably struggle to claim they deserve any of it at this point.
colinbartlett: Yes because if it helps keep devices in use longer it helps reduce waste and the planetary impacts of a culture of disposable products.
thecybernerd: I wonder what the active device threshold is for them to make the decision to patch an operating system from a decade ago.
ronsor: Probably recent active exploitation
suprstarrd: To be clear: the phone is from 2015, not the exploit chain.Related: https://cloud.google.com/blog/topics/threat-intelligence/cor...
cosmic_cheese: I mean there’s loads of Android stuff in Apple-adjacent price brackets that haven’t seen the tiniest hint of an update in many years…
cryptoegorophy: Well. You can buy iPhone 6S for $50. How much cheaper did you want it?
falkensmaize: Absurdly high markups? They just released a very good laptop for $599. The Galaxy S26 Ultra is $1299. The OnePlus 15 is $999. A Dell XPS 16 with 32gb ram is over $2000.I won’t argue that they charge a premium for memory and nvme, but I have never felt like I overpaid for my MacBooks or iPhones, in part because they last so long.
burnt-resistor: Still waiting for iOS and iPadOS security updates to 18 as per the tradition of supporting the past 2 generations of OSes rather than this sneaky rug-pull of trying to foist fugly 26 on users who don't want an unusable device.This sort of spurious patching and releasing token cheap devices is a form of gaslighting.
anshumankmr: This will really help the 10 people still using an iPhone 6S.(Still a common W for Apple updates)
seam_carver: Available for:iPhone 6s (all models), iPhone 7 (all models), iPhone SE (1st generation), iPad Air 2, iPad mini (4th generation), and iPod touch (7th generation)iOS 16.7.15 and iPadOS 16.7.15: iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone X, iPad 5th generation, iPad Pro 9.7-inch, and iPad Pro 12.9-inch 1st generation
throwaway85825: A device can be unsupported yet millions will still use it. The obsolescence business model needs to be legislated away.
runako: iPhone 17 Pro is $1099, Google Pixel Pro is $999, Galaxy S26 Ultra is $1,299.Flagship phones are expensive. Apple mostly just does not make low-spec phones, and cheap phones are generally low-spec (or their makers would charge more).
gruez: Should DEC still be releasing patches for the PDP-11? Apple is probably the better companies out there. Some Android devices (cheap tablets on aliexpress) don't even get a year of updates.
nineteen999: Now if they'd just release an update to 26.3.1 (23D8133) which PERMANENTLY broke Apple Carplay for me I'd be happy.
paulryanrogers: If only they had user replaceable batteries, or repairable devices
tpmoney: https://support.apple.com/self-service-repairhttps://support.apple.com/mac-laptops/repair?services=servic...https://getsupport.apple.com/repair-locations?locale=en_US
paulryanrogers: I mean self repair without renting proprietary equipment, having to soften glue with heat, etc. I used to be able to swap batteries in seconds without tools. Some laptops could do it without shutting down.
stock_toaster: Indeed! I was about to post something very similar. Glad I scrolled down a bit.
kevincloudsec: patching a kernel exploit on a phone from 2015 is nice until you realize the coruna IOC URLs were still live long enough for jailbreakers to weaponize the code before the patch shipped.
ryandrake: This is nice in that Apple acknowledges that iPhone 6s and iPhone 7 devices still exist and are used. I wish third party developers would read that memo and get with the program. The App Store is becoming a ghost town of "This app stopped supporting your icky old device" warning messages due to app developers abandoning these phones.
GeekyBear: A security update for an eleven year old phone is pretty wild.For comparison, the Nexus 6P was released in the same year as the iPhone 6S. It last received a security update in 2018.
VladVladikoff: Only 3 years of security updates for a computer we use every day is criminal. It shouldn’t be shocking that Apple kept patching but rather that Google hasn’t.
