Code found in iOS 26 beta 1 reportedly reveals that Apple is prepping a new feature: Background Security Improvements. These will patch security problems and won’t need the user to be involved or even be aware that a patch is being applied to their iPhone.
This is apparently the replacement for Rapid Security Responses, an iPhone security tool that Apple introduced but then hasn’t used in years.
What happened to Rapid Security Responses?
Hackers are a constant threat, and Apple does everything it can to make its operating systems safe. When new security problems are discovered, patches for iOS go out as soon as possible.
To speed this process up, Apple introduced Rapid Security Responses — iOS updates that stymie hackers but make no other changes so a full operating system update isn’t required. Clearly, something was off about Rapid Security Responses because Apple used the system a few times in 2023 but never again. Since then, it’s released multiple iOS updates that were essentially security patches, like iOS 18.7.
And there’s evidence the system has been dropped. iOS 16 had a section in the Settings app so users could allow “Security Responses & System Files” to be installed. In iOS 26, this has been changed to say simply “System Files,” removing the reference to Rapid Security Responses.
iOS 26.1 could introduce easy Background Security Improvements
Apple came up with Background Security Improvements as a replacement, according to an unconfirmed report in MacWorld. These will reportedly “deliver quick and urgent security patches that do not require a new version of iOS, which takes longer to develop.”
Perhaps the standout difference between the upcoming system and the old Rapid Security Responses is that future patches can be installed automatically in the background… hence the name.
That doesn’t mean Apple intends to update iPhones without user consent. “The code suggests Apple plans to make these automatic patches optional once the system becomes available,” said MacWorld.
Given that the references to Background Security Improvements had to be found in code, and it’s not a feature that shows up for users of iOS 26.1 beta 1, it could be some time before the system is implemented.
Ed Hardy has been writing full-time about tech for 25 years, and using it for much longer than that. His intro to Apple was a Macintosh Classic II (which he still has), but now he uses a 13-inch iPad Pro as his primary computer. He’s written for NotebookReview, TabletPCReview, and Brighthand, as well as other sites.
