--- title: Apple Releases Fix for iPhone Security Flaw description: Apple on Thursday released a patch fixing a previously unknown security flaw that can give hackers complete access to a targeted iPhone. canonical: https://time.com/4466533/update-your-iphone/ author: Alex Fitzpatrick article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-08-25T17:57:04.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:50:25.597Z article:section: Business og:title: You Need to Update Your iPhone Immediately og:description: This is not a drill og:url: https://time.com/4466533/update-your-iphone/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt14e2ceca155fff07/6988a186428a9e3891cd3d0a/gettyimages-489943606.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Apple's I Phone 6S : Launch at Apple Opera Store In Paris og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: You Need to Update Your iPhone Immediately twitter:description: This is not a drill twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt14e2ceca155fff07/6988a186428a9e3891cd3d0a/gettyimages-489943606.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # You Need to Update Your iPhone Immediately  by [Alex Fitzpatrick](/author/alex-fitzpatrick/)  ## Alex Fitzpatrick Aug 25, 2016 5:57 PM CUT  A customer checks the new iPhone 6s displayed at the Apple Store Opera on September 25, 2015 in Paris, France. A customer checks the new iPhone 6s displayed at the Apple Store Opera on September 25, 2015 in Paris, France.Chesnot—Getty Images  by [Alex Fitzpatrick](/author/alex-fitzpatrick/)  ## Alex Fitzpatrick Aug 25, 2016 5:57 PM CUT Got an iPhone? Update it. Right now. _This is not a drill._ Why the urgency? Apple on Thursday [released](http://time.com/4466480/apple-security-spyware-middle-east/ "undefined") a patch fixing a previously unknown security flaw that can give hackers complete access to a targeted iPhone. That is a Very Bad Thing. Software exploiting that vulnerability was found “targeting an activist’s iPhone in the Middle East,” the Associated Press [reports](http://time.com/4466480/apple-security-spyware-middle-east/ "undefined"). Once a flaw like that is out there, it’s only a matter of time before other hackers start using it. So be proactive and patch up your phone before they have the chance. To update your iPhone, open **Settings, then General, then Software Update, then “Install.”** ([iOS 9.3.5](https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT207107 "undefined") is the version you want.) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4466533/update-your-iphone/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4466533/update-your-iphone/"},"headline":"You Need to Update Your iPhone Immediately","datePublished":"2016-08-25T17:57:04.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:50:25.597Z","description":"Apple just fixed a serious security flaw","url":"https://time.com/4466533/update-your-iphone/","keywords":["Tech"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt14e2ceca155fff07/6988a186428a9e3891cd3d0a/gettyimages-489943606.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alex Fitzpatrick","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/alex-fitzpatrick/"}],"articleSection":"Business","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt14e2ceca155fff07/6988a186428a9e3891cd3d0a/gettyimages-489943606.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Apple's I Phone 6S : Launch at Apple Opera Store In Paris","caption":"Apple's I Phone 6S : Launch at Apple Opera Store In Paris","creditText":"Chesnot—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/business/","name":"Business"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-tech/","name":"Tech"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4466533/update-your-iphone/","name":"You Need to Update Your iPhone Immediately"}}]}] ```