Apple is no longer signing iOS & iPadOS 15.2 as of Wednesday, a move on the Cupertino-based company’s part that will stymie individual users’ attempts to restore or downgrade their iPhone or iPad to this particular firmware using either Finder on macOS or iTunes on Windows.
The change comes just one week after Apple released iOS & iPadOS 15.2.1 to the general public with additional HomeKit-related security fortifications and CarPlay-centric bug fixes.
Apple regularly goes out of its way to prevent iPhone and iPad users from downgrading their device’s firmware. While the company cites reasons such as security concerns and wanting users to try new features, jailbreakers have come to recognize this as a ruse to prevent them from downgrading their firmware to jailbreakable version(s).
Firmware downgrades aren’t unique to jailbreakers, however. In some cases, even ordinary iPhone and iPad users will attempt to downgrade their firmware, especially in the event that a software update causes aggravating bugs. Examples include iOS 14.7 which broke unlocking Apple Watches with Touch ID-equipped iPhones and iOS 13.2, which imposed overly-aggressive app backgrounding management.
While Apple eventually released subsequent updates after these issues became known, many users were stuck with the issues until that happened, minus those that went through with a software downgrade in the interim while they could.
It seems highly unlikely that Apple will ever change its firmware downgrade policies, but that hasn’t stopped users from expressing disapproval over Apple controlling what they can and can’t run on the device’s they own. At iDownloadBlog, we tend to agree with that idea.
If you’re ever wondering what version(s) of iOS or iPadOS are being signed for your device, the handy IPSW.me utility is a powerful tool for finding that information. You can also use our dedicated Downloads page to grab any version of iOS or iPadOS for your specific device.
Has Apple’s decision to stop signing iOS & iPadOS 15.2 affected you in any way? Be sure to let us know in the comments section down below.