A newly discovered software bug is causing some iPhones to crash when they receive a certain text message.
The offending message — a mixture of symbols and Arabic characters — causes users’ phones to shut down, then quickly reboot. Reports of the glitch surfaced this week on Reddit, an online forum, before quickly spreading to tech blogs.
Apple says it’s aware of the problem and is working on a fix that will come in the form of an update to the iPhone’s iOS operating system. The company didn’t elaborate on timing.
In the meantime, iPhone users who are worried about the bug can protect their phones by disabling notifications, according to reports.
Some pranksters are sharing information about the glitch on social media and using it to crash other people’s phones. However, the bug doesn’t appear to affect all iPhones. On Wednesday, the bug didn’t seem to be widespread.
