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At least there was a new iPhone…
In a week where not much else has happened, at least we got a new iPhone. The "16e" kind of replaces the iPhone SE, except that it is quite a bit more expensive and different. This marks the end of the Lightning port, the Home button and Touch ID in iPhones.
Also the end of iPhones that are significantly smaller than 6". I dare to predict that two to three years down the road, small phones will come back as an "amazing innovation!"
⚙️ Apple Updates
🔐 Security and Privacy
First analysis of Apple's USB Restricted Mode bypass
Apple released iOS 18.3.1 (build 22D72) to patch a vulnerability tied to the Accessibility framework and reported by Citizen Lab.
Microsoft warns that the powerful XCSSET macOS malware is back with new tricks
Microsoft said it has detected a new variant of XCSSET, a powerful macOS malware family that has targeted developers and users since at least 2020.
DPRK DriverEasy & ChromeUpdate Deep Dive
a deep dive into another related application named DriverEasy, which was recently uploaded to VirusTotal, to understand how it works and compare it to the other two DPRK attributed applications.
🔨 Support and Tutorials
Managing Self Service+ Notifications via configuration profile
Dr Emily K on Jamf Nation Community
While people are digging into the shiny new Self Service+ app I thought I'd share a quick way to manage notifications for that app with a simple configuration profile.
Executive Summary: Apple Intelligence Management in macOS 15 Sequoia
organizations aiming to completely turn off Apple Intelligence will not discover a universal “disable all” key within Mobile Device Management (MDM).
♻️ Updates and Releases
An update on App Installers
The new App Installers binary will also support another change that we will start rolling out over the coming months which is the ability for the end user computer to download the media directly from the original vendor and then perform the install.
🎧 Listen
Backup Challenges with Adam Engst Of The Tidbits Content Network
the hosts are joined by Adam Engst from TidBITS Content Network to discuss the evolving landscape of bootable backups, cloud storage solutions, and disaster recovery strategies.
How did Parallels bring x86 emulation to Apple Silicon?
Kamal Srinivasan from Alludo about Parallels gaining the ability to emulate x86 on Apple Silicon.