Apple stops signing iOS 15.4: What it means for iPhone users – Times of India

Apple recently started to roll out the first beta of iOS 15.4.1 for iPhone users, the company has stopped signing iOS 15.4. This means that Apple iPhone users with new iOS updates can no longer downgrade to iOS 15.4. So, if you are already using iOS 15.4 or have upgraded to iOS 15.4.1 then you cannot downgrade, even if you want to.
Released last month, iOS 15.4 comes with several notable features that were showcased by Apple when it unveiled the iOS 15 last year. It was one of the ‘biggest’ mid-season updates for iPhone users and brings the option of unlocking an iPhone with FaceID while wearing a mask.
With iOS 15.4, iPhone users get more than 37 new emoji, including faces, hand gestures, and household objects. Users can now choose separate skin tones for each hand in the handshake emoji. Apart from this, Apple also added new features to SharePlay. Before iOS 15.4, one had to initiate a FaceTime call before you could start a shared activity with SharePlay in a supported app. Now you can start SharePlay from FaceTime and SharePlay sessions can be initiated directly from supported apps.
Apple regularly stops signing legacy codes after a new iOS build is launched as it allows the company to keep more devices on feature-rich versions and it also protects users from hackers that try to use newly discovered weak links. Although the company doesn’t recommend downgrading to an older iOS build, iPhone users who jailbreak their devices often prefer this process. Users who face battery issues and any other bugs when they install a new iOS build update also try to downgrade their operating system. This week, Apple also started seeding the first beta versions of iOS 15.5 and iPadOS 15.5.