Apple fixes bug that cops used to extract deleted chat messages from iPhones
Apple has patched a vulnerability in iOS and iPadOS that allowed law enforcement to recover deleted Signal messages from devices using forensic extraction tools. The bug persisted even after users had deleted their messages through the Signal app.
Why this matters: Signal's whole value is that messages go away when you delete them. This bug meant they did not — at least not from the device's storage. Forensic tools used by law enforcement could pull them back out. That is a problem not just for people with something to hide, but for lawyers, journalists, activists, and anyone who assumed deletion meant deletion. Apple fixed it, which is good. But it took a patch to close a gap that quietly undermined a core privacy promise millions of people were counting on.
Who should care: Lawyers · Privacy officers · Compliance
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