Apple Issues Rare iOS 18 Security Update to Protect Against DarkSword Exploit

Apple today released a new build of iOS 18.7.7 and iPadOS 18.7.7, presumably with a fix for the DarkSword exploit. Apple told Wired that it would release an iOS 18 update for more devices, allowing users with auto-update turned on to receive the security update. iOS 18.7.7 was initially limited to the iPhone XS and XR models, but it is now available for other iPhones. Apple is pushing the iOS 18 fix to customers who have decided not to upgrade to iOS 26, but the company encourages users with supported devices to update to ‌iOS 26‌ to get better protection. Devices running ‌iOS 26‌ are already protected against DarkSword, which is a vulnerability that allows a malicious entity to take over an iPhone if the iPhone user visits a website with infected code. It is highly unusual for Apple to provide a security update to iOS 18 users who simply don't want to upgrade to ‌iOS 26‌, as Apple uses security fixes as a way to push people to the latest version of iOS or