Apple released a software update on Wednesday for iPhones and iPads fixing a bug that allowed law enforcement to extract messages that had been deleted or disappeared automatically from messaging apps. This was because notifications that displayed the messages\u2019 content were also cached on the device for up to a month.<\/p>\n
In a security notice on its website, Apple said that the bug<\/a> meant \u201cnotifications marked for deletion could be unexpectedly retained on the device.\u201d<\/p>\n This is a clear reference to an issue revealed by 404 Media<\/a> earlier this month. The independent news outlet reported that the FBI had been able to extract deleted Signal messages from someone\u2019s iPhone using forensic tools, due to the fact that the content of the messages had been displayed in a notification and then stored inside a phone\u2019s database \u2014 even after the messages were deleted inside Signal.<\/p>\n After the news, Signal president Meredith Whittaker said the messaging app maker asked Apple to address the issue. \u201cNotifications for deleted messages shouldn\u2019t remain in any OS notification database,\u201d Whittaker wrote in a post on Bluesky<\/a>.<\/p>\n \t\t\tContact Us It\u2019s unclear why the notifications\u2019 content was logged to begin with, but today\u2019s fix suggests it was a bug.\u00a0<\/p>\n Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment asking why the notifications were being retained. The company also backported the fix<\/a> to iPhone and iPad owners running the older iOS 18 software.<\/p>\n Privacy activists expressed alarm when they learned that the FBI had found a way around a security feature that is used daily by at-risk users. Signal, like other messaging apps such as WhatsApp, allows users to set up a timer that instructs the app to automatically delete messages after a set amount of time. This feature can be helpful for anyone who wants to keep their conversations secret in the event that authorities seize their devices.<\/p>\n Techcrunch event<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSan Francisco, CA
\n\t\t\tDo you have more information about how authorities are using forensic tools on iPhones or Android devices? From a non-work device, you can contact Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai securely on Signal at +1 917 257 1382, or via Telegram and Keybase @lorenzofb, or email<\/a>.<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOctober 13-15, 2026\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n