Feature and policy changes to phone operating systems, app stores and apps, and what they mean for privacy and security.
Signal released iOS 8.30 on 28 September, and its encrypted Signal Secure Backups can now be restored between Android and iPhone, so chats can follow you to a new platform. In September Google added a way on Android to move passwords and passkeys between password managers without exporting a file, starting with four apps.
Based on 21 sources, including Signal, Google, Android Developers
Firefox on iPhone and iPad now has a built-in ad blocker, first listed in the 156 release notes in mid-September. It is off by default. On Android, the system-level options surveyed in a personal blog post mostly mean trusting whoever runs the service or app.
Based on 9 sources, including Mozilla, Kevin Boone, Google
Since iOS 18.1, an iPhone that stays locked for a long time restarts itself, putting its data back into a harder-to-extract state. In a forensic vendor's video, apparently made in early 2025, an employee says seized phones keep their once-unlocked state even after a restart. As of 7 October it is unclear whether this works on the latest iOS, and neither Apple nor Magnet responded to 404 Media.
Based on 21 sources, including Apple, 404 Media, Privacy Guides
PipePipe, an Android fork of NewPipe, plays YouTube, NicoNico and BiliBili without an account or Google Play. Version 5.4.0 improves TV controls and fixes 12 bugs.
Based on 15 sources, including PipePipe, GitHub, F-Droid
A flaw lets any Android app send traffic around a VPN and reveal the real IP, even with "Block connections without VPN" on. Mullvad is also shutting down its public encrypted DNS on 2 November, so anyone who set it up by hand needs to switch.
Based on 16 sources, including Mullvad, CyberInsider, GrapheneOS
Android 17 QPR1 adds new APIs for app developers without releasing the source to AOSP, so non-Pixel phones and systems such as GrapheneOS wait until QPR2 in December.
Based on 11 sources, including Google, GrapheneOS, Android Developers
