Apple Pulls Emergency Security Update Over Safari Bug

Yesterday, we strongly advised users of iPhones, iPads, and Macs to update their devices with Apple’s latest Rapid Security Response to patch a critical software vulnerability. But just hours after Apple released the RSR, the company had to pull the update, as it was found to be causing incompatibilities with several popular websites in Safari.

First introduced last year, Apple’s Rapid Security Response system allows the company to push important software updates to devices to specifically address and remedy security issues, without requiring users to perform a full OS update, which can sometimes take a while to complete. Yesterday’s RSR addressed a bug that affected Apple’s Safari WebKit browser engine, potentially allowing arbitrary code to be executed and malware to be employed after a user unknowingly visited a malicious webpage.

But just hours after yesterday’s RSR was issued, users of the MacRumors forums started to report that the update had introduced issues with Safari, with popular sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Zoom returning errors that the browser wasn’t supported. Soon after, others had discovered and reported that Apple had officially pulled the RSR, and while there’s no timeline for when an updated version will be available again, it probably won’t take long for Apple to fix and release it.

Although the latest RSR was removed before the majority of Apple devices were able to download and install it, those who did should be able to remove the update if they’re experiencing the Safari website incompatibilities. On mobile devices, going into Settings > General > About and then tapping on the iOS or iPadOS Version should reveal an option to remove a Security Response. On MacBooks and Mac computers, going into System Settings > General > About and then scrolling down to macOS should reveal an ‘i’ information button that will open a “Last Security Response” window with the option to remove it and restart the machine.

Update – July 11, 11:59am EST: If you have already installed the security update on your device and want to remove it to resolve issues with Safari, Apple has published an official guide on its website with instructions on how to remove it from iOS, iPadOS, and macOS.

Yesterday, we strongly advised users of iPhones, iPads, and Macs to update their devices with Apple’s latest Rapid Security Response to patch a critical software vulnerability. But just hours after Apple released the RSR, the company had to pull the update, as it was found to be causing incompatibilities with several popular websites in Safari.

First introduced last year, Apple’s Rapid Security Response system allows the company to push important software updates to devices to specifically address and remedy security issues, without requiring users to perform a full OS update, which can sometimes take a while to complete. Yesterday’s RSR addressed a bug that affected Apple’s Safari WebKit browser engine, potentially allowing arbitrary code to be executed and malware to be employed after a user unknowingly visited a malicious webpage.

But just hours after yesterday’s RSR was issued, users of the MacRumors forums started to report that the update had introduced issues with Safari, with popular sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Zoom returning errors that the browser wasn’t supported. Soon after, others had discovered and reported that Apple had officially pulled the RSR, and while there’s no timeline for when an updated version will be available again, it probably won’t take long for Apple to fix and release it.

Although the latest RSR was removed before the majority of Apple devices were able to download and install it, those who did should be able to remove the update if they’re experiencing the Safari website incompatibilities. On mobile devices, going into Settings > General > About and then tapping on the iOS or iPadOS Version should reveal an option to remove a Security Response. On MacBooks and Mac computers, going into System Settings > General > About and then scrolling down to macOS should reveal an ‘i’ information button that will open a “Last Security Response” window with the option to remove it and restart the machine.

Update – July 11, 11:59am EST: If you have already installed the security update on your device and want to remove it to resolve issues with Safari, Apple has published an official guide on its website with instructions on how to remove it from iOS, iPadOS, and macOS.