Apple blocks people from reverting to older iOS versions once they’ve updated to iOS 13.3

Just a week after releasing its latest iOS 13 update, iOS 13.3, Apple has stopped signing its predecessor iOS 13.2.3. 

This means that it if you’ve upgraded to iOS 13.3 and it’s broken your phone, or you’re not a fan of the changes, you can no longer downgrade, or revert, back to iOS 13.2.3.

 This is because being on the most up-to-date software makes your phone more secure and stable and Apple prefers as many people as possible to be on the most recent iOS possible.

If you’ve upgraded your iOS and are having issues with the release, Apple is working on iOS 13.3.1 as we speak and anything that is flagged as part of iOS 13.1 should (hopefully) be fixed in the next release. If it’s bricked your phone, contact Apple for support. 

If you haven’t upgraded yet, it may be worth checking to see if there have been any issues reported by others before taking the jump. This will make your phone less secure, of course. 

READ NEXT: All the best new features in iOS 13

What’s new in iOS 13.3

Below we’ve listed the main changes available in iOS 13.3. The standout features are new parental controls and communication limits in Apple’s Screen Time tool, a new layout for Apple News+ and it solves a long-standing irritation that prevented the cursor from moving after long pressing on the space bar.

Screen Time

• New parental controls provide more communication limits over who their children can call, FaceTime, or Message
• Contact list for children lets parents manage the contacts that appear on their children’s devices

Apple News

• New layout for Apple News+ stories from The Wall Street Journal and other newspapers
• Easily like or dislike stories with a tap
• Stories from Apple News are now available in Canada in English and French
• Continue reading with links to related stories or more stories from the same publication
• “Breaking” and “Developing” labels for Top Stories

Security

iOS 13.3 has additionally brought support for NFC, USB, and Lightning FIDO2-compliant security keys to Apple’s Safari browser. 

FIDO2-compliant USB security keys – such as the keys made by Yubico – add an extra layer of security to a device or service. Beyond entering their usernames and passwords, the phone or service asks for an additional, unique USB security key available via a physical dongle or similar.  

They’re designed to prevent remote access to a site or service and are particularly useful for enterprise, banking websites or other highly-sensitive information.

Previously, you’d have to plug such keys into your device (on the main part) but with support for NFC in iOS 13.3, you’ll be able to simply touch the key to your phone. 

This update also includes bug fixes and other improvements:

• Enables the creation of a new video clip when trimming a video in Photos
• Fixes issues in Mail that may prevent downloading new messages
• Addresses an issue that prevented deleting messages in Gmail accounts
• Resolves issues that could cause incorrect characters to display in messages and duplication of sent messages in Exchange accounts
• Fixes an issue where the cursor may not move after long pressing on the space bar
• Addresses an issue that may cause screenshots to appear blurry when sent via Messages
• Resolves an issue where cropping or using Markup on screenshots may not save to Photos
• Fixes an issue where Voice Memos recordings may not be able to be shared with other audio apps
• Addresses an issue where the missed call badge on the Phone app may not clear
• Resolves an issue where the Cellular Data setting may incorrectly show as off
• Fixes an issue that prevented turning off Dark Mode when Smart Invert was enabled
• Addresses an issue where some wireless chargers may charge more slowly than expected