Even with the latest iOS 9.0.1 update, your iPhone’s lockscreen is unsafe

iOS 9.0.1, the first update for the recently-launched iOS 9, came out this week – fixing several bugs.

Unfortunately it appears that there wasn’t time to fix a vulnerability Jose Rodriguez informed me about before the weekend, allowing unauthorised users to bypass your iPhone or iPad’s lockscreen.

Before you know it, anyone with physical access to your ‘locked’ device could be accessing your personal photographs and contacts.

Rodriguez informed Apple of the security hole just before iOS 9.0 was released, and made a step-by-step video demonstrating how the vulnerability can be exploited:

Until Apple rolls out a fix, you will need to prevent Siri from being accessed from the lock screen in order to protect your iPhone:

• Go to the Settings app
• Choose Touch ID & Passcode
• You will be prompted for your passcode. Enter it.
• Scroll down to the “Allow access when locked” section, and disable Siri.

It’s really quite extraordinary how vulnerable iOS devices have been to lockscreen flaws over the years. You would like to think that it is something that Cupertino’s developers would pay special attention to, considering the number of occasions that security has been bypassed.

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Graham Cluley •   @gcluley

Graham Cluley is an award-winning keynote speaker who has given presentations around the world about cybersecurity, hackers, and online privacy. A veteran of the computer security industry since the early 1990s, he wrote the first ever version of Dr Solomon's Anti-Virus Toolkit for Windows, makes regular media appearances, and is the co-host of the popular "Smashing Security" podcast. Follow him on Twitter, Mastodon, Threads, Bluesky, or drop him an email.