Warning to iPhone users about common mistake in Settings app that can crash a protection feature

Apple iPhone users have been issued a warning about a common mistake in the Settings app that is crashing a protection feature.

The oversight is not updating your smartphone to the latest iOS update released this month.

The new iOS 17.6 fixes an issue that prevents some people from enabling Advanced Data Protection, which encrypts photos, passwords and home data.

Some iPhones may not have automatically installed the update because the phone wasn't connected to the internet, didn't have enough storage space or automatic updates weren't turned on. 

Apple introduced the new iOS 17.6 update on August 7, which included  a fix for problems with the Advanced Data Protection feature.

While some users reported receiving an error message when activating the protection feature, others found it showed up as disabled when they tried to turn it off.

With the new update, users should see  the 'build number' 21G101 in the Settings app.

Users can locate the number by going to the app and clicking on General and then the About section.

In the second row, it will show the iOS version your phone has installed and after clicking on it, there will be a number in brackets of the version downloaded.

Although Apple has confirmed it will launch its iOS 18 software in the coming months, experts have warned the iOS 17.6 update is not something users should ignore.

Apple didn’t explain the exact security issues that had accompanied its new update and said on its site that it won’t ‘disclose, discuss or confirm security issues until an investigation has occurred and patches or releases are available.’

This is so bad actors can’t take advantage of the vulnerabilities before customers can update their devices, the company explained.

Apple claimed last month that there is no evidence that hackers have exploited these back-end issues yet.

Sean Wright, the head of application security at Featurespace, told Forbes that although users shouldn’t panic about security issues, it’s still a good idea to ‘update as soon as you can.’