If you follow my weekly security video, WatchGuard Security Week in Review, you probably already heard me mention that Apple released both an OS X and Safari security update last week. I’m guessing, you’ve already applied those two updates, but if not get to it.
However, that wasn’t the end of Apple’s patch bonanza. Throughout this week, they also released updates to fix security flaws in OS X Server, iTunes, Xcode, and of course the big one, iOS. As you probably know, the iOS update is actually the new iOS 7; a huge feature release that significantly changes and adds many features on your iPhones and iPads. What you may not know is that it also fixes over 80 vulnerabilities in the popular mobile operating system. I suspect that iOS 7 has probably already become the most quickly adopted security update ever, simply because iOS folks tend to get the latest version quickly. That said, if you haven’t taken the leap to iOS 7 yet, perhaps the security aspect of the equation might convince you.
iOS 7 aside, the other updates also fix a number of security issues in each of those popular products. I’m guessing that few users actually used Xcode (it’s for developers) or OS X Server, so the iTunes update is probably the other one you’ll be most concerned with.
In any case, if you use Apple products or devices, you’re probably affected by at least one of these issues. So I recommend you go get the corresponding updates, or let Apple’s automatic update mechanisms do their job. — Corey Nachreiner, CISSP (@SecAdept)