If your iPhone supports iOS 27, install iOS 27.2 unless a critical app or accessory needs the older version. Apple also offers iOS 26.7.2 for phones staying on that branch. On an iPhone XS, XS Max or XR, install iOS 18.7.11. All three arrived on October 26.
Three updates on one day
On October 26, each group of iPhones got its own update. The counts below are ours, taken from the unique CVE identifiers in Apple’s combined iOS and iPadOS advisories. Each entry lists affected devices, so these totals do not mean every flaw affects every iPhone.
| Update | iPhones | Fixes listed |
|---|---|---|
| iOS 27.2 | iPhone 11 and later | 163 |
| iOS 26.7.2 | iPhone 11 and later, if you stayed on iOS 26 | 134 |
| iOS 18.7.11 | iPhone XS, XS Max and XR | 3 |
An iPhone 11 or newer gets no iOS 18 update on Apple's list. If you stayed on iOS 18 with one of those phones, you need to move up to get these fixes.
What staying on iOS 26 costs you
By our count, 41 of the iOS 27.2 fixes appear in no iOS 26.7 advisory. One is a flaw in WebKit, the engine behind Safari, that Apple says could let a malicious web page run code.
Apple doesn't say whether iOS 26 has those 41 bugs. Some may sit in code that's new to iOS 27, so we can't call them all open holes.
Fixes can also reach iOS 26 later. Thirteen of the fixes in iOS 26.7.2 were already in iOS 27 on September 14, six weeks earlier.
We'd move to iOS 27.2 unless an app or accessory you rely on doesn't work there yet. Check that first, because an installed update can't be downgraded. If something does hold you back, iOS 26.7.2 is a fair place to wait while Apple keeps patching it.
The fix iPhone XS owners waited four weeks for
On September 28, Apple patched a graphics flaw in iOS 26.7.1 that could let a malicious file run code. Apple reports possible exploitation in an extremely sophisticated attack against specific people using versions earlier than iOS 27. CISA, the US cybersecurity agency, added it to its list of known exploited flaws the next day.
iPhone XS, XS Max and XR owners got that fix on October 26, in iOS 18.7.11. That's 28 days later. Apple describes attacks against specific targeted individuals. That does not establish the risk for any particular owner, so install the available fix promptly.
Since iOS 18.7.10 arrived on August 17, those phones have received three listed fixes. iOS 26 has received 230 across three updates in the same stretch.
These totals do not show how many flaws affect iOS 18. They are not enough to decide that a phone needs to be replaced. Keep installing the updates Apple offers for your model, and check its support status before planning a replacement.
Check your version
Open Settings, tap General, then tap Software Update. That screen shows your current version and any update waiting for you.
Back up first and plug the phone in. For automatic installation, tap Automatic Updates on the same screen and turn on Automatically Install. The iPhone then installs updates overnight while it's charging on Wi-Fi.
