Apple updates macOS, iOS, watchOS, tvOS

Apple has released updates to macOS, iOS, watchOS and tvOS that resolves an issue of crashing when an Indian language character is received by certain messaging apps.

The bug causes causes app and system crashing on iPhones, iPads, and Macs due to a specific letter in the Indian language Telugu. Apple devices can’t render the Indian character, causing apps or the entire system to crash. If the character is sent in an iMessage, for example, the recipient’s Messages app will crash when the conversation is opened. 

If the character is pasted into the Safari or Chrome address bar on Mac, the browsers crash. This behavior extends to virtually any system text field on iOS and macOS, resulting in many third-party apps like WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger being affected as well.

macOS High Sierra 10.13.3 is available at the Mac App Store via the Updates tab. You can download iOS 11.2.6 by navigating to the Software Update section of the Settings app on your iPhone and iPad. watchOS 4.2.3 can be found in the Watch iOS app on the iPhone. tvOS 11.2.6 is available from the Apple TV’s Settings app.