iPhone Warning: A Simple Typing Mistake Could Crash Your Device

If you are an iPhone user, do be aware of a new issue that could crash your device. A recent iOS bug has been discovered, where typing just four specific characters found on your keyboard can lead to a crash of your device, according to TechCrunch. The news outlet reported that on Wednesday, a security researcher found that typing “”:: can cause the Apple mobile user interface, called Springboard, to crash.

TechCrunch verified that those characters do crash Springboard when typed into the Search bar in the Settings app, as well as if you swipe all the way to the right on your home screen and type them into the App Library search bar.

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As others noted, all that’s needed is actually “”: and any other character. Triggering the bug briefly crashes Springboard, then reloads to your lock screen. In other tests, the bug flashed the screen black for a second. Apple did not comment when reached.

As per the TechCrunch interview with researchers, the bug appears to be non-threatening to security. Ryan Stortz, whose field is iOS security and who investigated the issue, said, “It’s not a security bug.” Patrick Wardle, a researcher on iOS who is also the founder of the security firm DoubleYou, also agreed to the fact.

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According to Forbes, when the bug is triggered, it crashes your iPhone’s springboard and then reloads to the lock screen. In some cases, the screen flashes black first.

The bug crashes iPhones when the characters are typed into the Search bar in the Settings app, as well as when you swipe all the way to the right on your home screen and type the characters into the App Library search bar.