iOS 18.4.1 fixes two serious security vulnerabilities and wireless CarPlay bug

Apple has released iOS 18.4.1 and iPadOS 18.4.1, which offers no new features but fixes two critical vulnerabilities. For both fixes, Apple says on its security updates page that it is “aware of a report that this issue may have been exploited in an extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals on iOS.”

The release notes are small for this one. Outside of the security fixes, this release only claims to fix a bug with wireless CarPlay.

This update provides important bug fixes, security updates, and addresses a rare issue that prevents wireless CarPlay connection in certain vehicles.

Even though you may not be a specific individual target of hackers, you should update your iPhones and iPads now. The security bulletins are as follows:

CoreAudio

Available for: iPhone XS and later, iPad Pro 13-inch, iPad Pro 13.9-inch 3rd generation and later, iPad Pro 11-inch 1st generation and later, iPad Air 3rd generation and later, iPad 7th generation and later, and iPad mini 5th generation and later

Impact: Processing an audio stream in a maliciously crafted media file may result in code execution. Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been exploited in an extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals on iOS.

Description: A memory corruption issue was addressed with improved bounds checking.

CVE-2025-31200: Apple and Google Threat Analysis Group

RPAC

Available for: iPhone XS and later, iPad Pro 13-inch, iPad Pro 13.9-inch 3rd generation and later, iPad Pro 11-inch 1st generation and later, iPad Air 3rd generation and later, iPad 7th generation and later, and iPad mini 5th generation and later

Impact: An attacker with arbitrary read and write capability may be able to bypass Pointer Authentication. Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been exploited in an extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals on iOS.

Description: This issue was addressed by removing the vulnerable code.

CVE-2025-31201: Apple

iOS 18.4.1: How to install

To get the latest version of iOS 18 on your phone, head over to the Settings app, then General and Software Update. Then follow the prompts to restart and install the update. If you don’t want to wait until the official update arrives, you can install the most recent release candidate, which will be identical to the public release, by turning on Beta Updates in the Software Update tab.

Find out everything you need to know about iOS 18 in our iOS 18 superguide.