Apple has confirmed a new security update for iOS users, but you need to make sure this setting is enabled to get it. Here’s what you need to know and do.

Apple’s next iPhone software update is getting closer to release, and the latest beta version of iOS 26.4 is giving developers and testers a preview of what’s coming next. The update introduces a handful of smaller features and refinements as Apple prepares the software for a broader public rollout later this spring.

Apple’s much-anticipated release is set to not just eliminate bugs but also add features and further enhance the Liquid Glass interface. Apple’s iOS 26 for iPhone got off to a rough start when it was finally released to the public in September of last year.

iOS 26 is not a routine tune-up for the iPhone, it is a reset of how the software looks, behaves, and protects you. The core update reshapes the interface, layers in new intelligence, and then doubles down on security with rapid follow-on releases that ...

Apple's latest developer beta adds AI-generated Apple Music playlists, early testing for encrypted RCS messaging and a new setting to tone down iOS 26's brighter visual effects.

"Background Security Improvements" is Apple's new way of installing security updates.