Apple iOS 18 Bug: What You Need to Know and How to Handle It

Apple recently rolled out iOS 18, its latest operating system for iPhones. However, within 48 hours of its release, users encountered a troublesome bug in the Messages app. This glitch, while triggered by a very specific scenario, has caused frustration among users. Here’s a breakdown of the Apple iOS 18 bug issue, how it occurs, and what steps you can take to mitigate its impact until Apple provides a fix.

Apple iOS 18 Bug: What You Need to Know and How to Handle It

The bug centres around Apple Watch face and iMessage interactions. It begins when someone shares a watch face with you via an iMessage thread. This seems like a harmless activity, but if you’re using iOS 18, replying to that particular message can lead to a serious problem.

Once you respond to the conversation where the watch face was shared, the Messages app may start crashing repeatedly. The problem becomes severe enough that you may be unable to open the conversation without the app crashing again. This issue doesn’t just affect the receiver of the watch face— both the sender and the receiver face the same difficulties, experiencing frequent crashes when attempting to open the thread.

Consequences of the Bug

The most significant consequence of this bug is that it can render the affected conversation inaccessible. Not only do you lose the ability to reply to the thread, but the constant crashes may also prevent you from interacting with other messages in the app. This situation can be particularly problematic if the affected conversation includes important attachments such as photos, videos, or files.

Worse still, any attempts to fix the problem by deleting the conversation thread may lead to the loss of all chat history, including those attachments. Once the conversation is deleted, there is no way to retrieve the content that hasn’t been saved elsewhere. Even if you attempt to restore the conversation from the recently deleted messages folder, the bug will be triggered again, making it a non-viable solution.

Temporary Solutions Until Apple Fixes the Bug

Unfortunately, until Apple releases an official fix—likely in the form of an iOS 18.0.1 update —there aren’t many solid workarounds. However, here are a few steps you can consider:

1. Avoid Replying to Watch Face Messages: If someone sends you a watch face through iMessage, the best advice is to not reply to that specific message. You can continue the conversation in a separate thread or avoid interacting with the watch face message altogether.
2. Delete the Conversation: If you’ve already triggered the bug, your only option might be to delete the entire conversation. Be cautious, as this will permanently erase the chat history. You’ll lose any attachments if you haven’t saved it externally.
3. Backup Important Data: If you’re concerned about losing attachments or important messages, make sure to back up any critical photos or files to another location like iCloud, Google Drive, or a computer.

Apple’s Upcoming Fix

While Apple has not officially commented on the issue yet, it’s safe to assume that a solution is on the way, most likely in the form of a minor software update. iOS 18.0.1 will most likely resolve this bug, and given the severity of the issue, this update should arrive shortly.

Until then, users should exercise caution when interacting with watch-face messages in the Messages app to avoid triggering the crash loop. Stay tuned for Apple’s prompt response to this problem.