The iOS 12 Upgrade Is Causing Some Serious Problems For People

While smartphone software updates are always intended to bring improvements and positive changes, there are times when these patches create more problems than they solve. According to reports, that appears to be the case with iOS 12. Amongst all of the issues that supposedly cropped up after the software rolled out, one of them affects a service widely considered to be the core of iOS as an operating system.

According to Forbes, the issues with iMessage appear to have originated from Apple’s desire to improve the service through its iOS 12 update, and have been affecting all iOS devices since the software was rolled out. With no fanfare, Apple made changes to iMessage that ideally would have allowed users to combine threads for iMessage contacts — with multiple phone numbers and email addresses rolled into one convenient thread. However, several users have claimed that the new feature combines threads from different contacts, which means that if you use iMessage following the iOS 12 update, your message could unintentionally be sent to a person you weren’t intending to send it to.

“This issue has been devastating and needs to be resolved ASAP,” read the complaint of one iMessage user on Apple’s support forums.

“I depend upon iMessage and can no longer trust/depend on the tool to send messages to the proper person. In the same way, I cannot be sure from whom texts are actually being sent.”

As noted by Forbes, others who updated to iOS 12 reported that different family members’ contacts, such as one user’s mother and sister and another user’s son and husband, were merged in the same thread. One Apple device owner similarly complained about the unintentional effect of two people seeing each other’s phone call history.

If random friends wonder why you're sending them texts not meant for them, don't worry, it could just be this #iMessage bug…unless you're drunk texting your ex. #IOS12 @Apple https://t.co/Cv4pn8RIST

— Tech2 (@tech2eets) October 1, 2018

Considering the numerous “awkward” situations that have emerged since the iOS 12 update, PiunikaWeb wrote that Apple appears to have updated iMessage in such a way that the service only recognizes shared Apple IDs among family members, as opposed to recognizing a person’s name in a user’s contacts. The problem also appears to be growing in magnitude, as Forbes observed that one thread describing the issue received more than 300 upvotes at the time of the article’s writing.

The bug currently affecting one of iOS’ most fundamental, widely-used services is not the only issue that appears to have come to light after the iOS 12 update rolled out. According to Tom’s Guide, several owners of Apple’s new flagship phones — the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max — have claimed that their devices refuse to charge when the screen is off, even if they are plugged into an outlet.

While some have tried home remedies and workarounds such as unplugging their devices, waking the screen, then resuming the charging process — the charging bug has reportedly plagued a growing number of iPhone XS and XS Max owners. The root of this problem remains unclear, but AppleInsider reported on Saturday that the culprit might be iOS 12’s USB restricted mode feature, which helps protect iPhones from third-party devices designed to unknowingly extract valuable data from them.