iPhone 16e owners should update to iOS 18.5 right now

Macworld

Apple released iOS 18.5 on Monday, and iPhone 16e owners will want to pay special attention to the update. According to Apple’s security release notes, a fix was issued in regards to the iPhone 16e’s C1 modem, where “An attacker in a privileged network position may be able to intercept network traffic.” Below is the section from the security notes that describes the issue.

Baseband

Impact: An attacker in a privileged network position may be able to intercept network traffic

Description: This issue was addressed through improved state management.

CVE-2025-31214: 秦若涵, 崔志伟, and 崔宝江

The corresponding CVE record in the CVE database is still listed as reserved and will be made public once it has been updated. Considering the speed of which Apple released the patch—the phone has only been out for about three months—it appears to be a serious issue.

Along with the C1 fix, iOS 18.5 includes some 30 security patches ranging from AppleJPEG to WebKit.

How to install iOS 18.5

Installing iOS 18.5 is done in the Settings app and requires an internet connection. Tap on General > Software Update and follow the prompts. The iPhone will need to restart, so plan your iPhone usage accordingly. Learn more about iOS 18 in our iOS 18 superguide.