Apple's release of iOS 15.4 beta 2 fixes a bug that could have recorded users' interactions with Siri on some devices, regardless of whether they had opted out of this process. The bug, which first appeared in iOS 15 , automatically enabled the Improve Siri & Dictation setting that gives Apple permission to record, store, and audit users' conversations with Siri.
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Apple said it has since deleted any audio recordings collected in connection with the bug. After discovering its existence, the company reportedly disabled the feature for “multiple” users when it released iOS 15.2, but fully fixed the bug in the second beta of iOS 15.4. That’s why you may get a prompt asking for your permission to enable the Improved Siri & Dictation feature once you install the new 15.4 beta.
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“With iOS 15.2, we turned off the Siri & Dictation Improvements setting for many Siri users, while also fixing a bug introduced with iOS 15,” Apple told ZDNet. “This bug inadvertently enabled the setting for a small subset of devices. Since we discovered the bug, we have stopped checking and are deleting audio received from all affected devices.”
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This sounds like the kind of bug that Apple should have explicitly warned all of its users about, urging them to make sure their iPhones are up to date and personally notify anyone affected. Instead, the company has left us in the dark about how many phones were affected or when. Without transparency, there’s no way to know who might have been recorded and their conversations exposed to Apple employees, despite the fact that it was asked to avoid exactly that outcome. If you have an iPhone, now is a good time to update your device to iOS 15.2 or later if you haven’t already.
