Apple today released iOS 26.4.2 and iPadOS 26.4.2 for iPhone and iPad users. The updates arrive two weeks after iOS 26.4.1 and iPadOS 26.4.1 shipped on April 8, and they carry a security fix that's more significant than the typical point release.

The headline here is a bug that allowed deleted push notifications to be unexpectedly retained on-device. Apple confirmed to 9to5Mac that it became aware of reports of push notifications persisting after apps were deleted, identified the underlying issue, and has patched it in 26.4.2. Notably, the fix doesn't just prevent future retention, it also retroactively purges any notification copies that had been unexpectedly stored on your device.

You can download the update now by going to Settings → General → Software Update.

iOS 26.4.2 (23E261)

Deleted Notifications Security Fix

The core fix in iOS 26.4.2 addresses a logging issue in Notification Services. According to Apple's security notes, notifications marked for deletion could be unexpectedly retained on the device. Apple resolved this with improved data redaction.

In plain terms: when you delete an app, its notifications are supposed to go with it. A bug in earlier versions of iOS 26.4 was preventing that from happening reliably, leaving copies of those notifications sitting on the device longer than they should have been.

Apple told 9to5Mac the fix also works retroactively, purging any previously retained notification data when you install 26.4.2. There's nothing you need to do to trigger that cleanup it happens automatically on update.

The context that makes this particularly notable: earlier this month, it was reported that the FBI successfully retrieved Signal notifications from a suspect's iPhone even after the Signal app had been deleted. Apple hasn't explicitly connected 26.4.2 to that incident, but the timing and the nature of the fix make the relationship fairly clear.

Alongside iOS 26.4.2, Apple has also released iOS 18.7.8 for older iPhones not running iOS 26, which carries the same notification fix.

iPadOS 26.4.2 (23E261)

iPadOS 26.4.2 ships alongside the iOS update with the same notification security fix. The same retroactive cleanup applies on iPad as well. iPad users running iPadOS 26.4.1 can find the update under Settings → General → Software Update. Apple also released iPadOS 18.7.8 for older iPads.

Availability

iOS 26.4.2 and iPadOS 26.4.2 are available now for all eligible devices. To download, open the Settings app and navigate to General → Software Update. The update is compatible with iPhone 11 and later, and with the iPad models that support iPadOS 26.

iOS 26.5 is currently in its third developer and public beta, with a release expected later in May. That update will bring a Suggested Places feature in Apple Maps and lays the groundwork for ads in Maps, along with continued testing of end-to-end encryption for RCS in Messages.