14 DAY TRIAL // Other iOS bug surfaced today, which could have an impact on your private conversations if you're using third-party messaging apps like WhatsApp, Telegram, and others.
Brazilian website Mac Magazine reports (via 9to5mac) that they've discovered a new bug in Apple's iOS mobile operating system that could allow the Siri personal intelligent assistant to unveil your messages from third-party messaging apps on your iPhone or iPad even if you set them to remain hidden when the device is locked.
iOS 11, the latest version of Apple's mobile operating system, has a setting that lets you hide the content of message notifications on your device's lock screen if it's locked. With this setting enabled, you'll still be able to see that you received some messages, but you won't be able to read them until you unlock the device.
The setting is even enabled by default for iPhone X users, but you have to set it yourself on other iPhone or iPad devices. However, it would appear that, somehow, Siri can read the content of most of these "hidden" notifications, thus allowing anyone to snoop through your private messages without unlocking the device.
Apple's Messages app isn't affected by the privacy bug
According to Mac Magazine, the bug doesn't affect Apple's own messaging app, Messages, but only third-party ones, including the very popular WhatsApp, Skype, and Telegram, which most iPhone users use on a daily basis. Also, the privacy bug appears to affect both the stable iOS 11.2.6 release and the current iOS 11.3 beta.
Mac Magazine has reported the bug to Apple, so we expect it to be squashed just before the final release of the iOS 11.3 operating system, which should be out early next week ahead of the company's "Let's Take a Field Trip" event that it will host on March 27, 2018, at Lane Tech College Prep High School in Chicago, Illinois, U.S..
We've tested the issue and can confirm that the bug is present is iOS 11.3 beta 6.