While we often worry about our phones and laptops being hacked, a newly discovered vulnerability could allow attackers to eavesdrop on Apple's AirPods

As reported by The Hacker News, the iPhone maker has released a new firmware update for its AirPods to prevent hackers from exploiting a recently discovered Bluetooth vulnerability

The flaw (tracked as CVE-2024-27867) is an authentication issue and affects AirPods (2nd generation and later), AirPods Pro (all models), AirPods Max, Powerbeats Pro and Beats Fit Pro headphones

According to a new advisory from Apple, an attacker could gain access to the headphones by impersonating the intended source device when the headphones are trying to connect to one of the previously paired devices For this attack to work, the attacker must be within Bluetooth range

If this flaw is exploited, an attacker could potentially eavesdrop on private conversations you are having on your best iPhone while connected to your AirPods or Beats headphones Fortunately, Apple has already released a firmware update to address this flaw

To update your AirPods, you must go to "Settings" then "Bluetooth" and tap the "Info" button next to your name From here you can scroll down to the "About" section to see the firmware version and update to the latest firmware

As you can imagine, the first and most important thing you can do to protect yourself from hackers is to keep your device updated with the latest software Hackers often target devices running outdated software because it contains flaws that have not yet been patched However, by updating frequently, you are less likely to fall victim to their attacks

Apple has its own antivirus software built into macOS called XProtect, but for additional protection, consider using one of the best Mac antivirus software solutions in parallel

Similarly, there is no iPhone equivalent to the best Android antivirus app because of Apple's own malware scanning limitations in iOS, but Intego Mac Internet Security X9 or Intego Mac Premium Bundle X9 can be used to scan iPhones and iPads for viruses There is a caveat, however You must connect your iPhone or iPad to your Mac using a USB cable in order to scan for malware

While not as dangerous as Mac malware, such vulnerabilities can be exploited by hackers