macOS Big Sur users should update to 11.6.1 right now
If you’re not upgrading to macOS 12 Monterey, there’s still an important update for your Mac this week. Apple has rolled out macOS Big Sur 11.6.1, bringing several patches to critical security issues through the system.
All said, there are a whopping 21 security updates in 11.6.1, a few of which appear to be quite serious. Several of them say the vulnerability could “lead to arbitrary code execution” and at least one has been actively exploited, meaning some users’ machines have been affected. Among the security updates are fixes for AppleScript, Audio, CoreGraphics, iCloud, Kernel, and Software Update itself. Apple acknowledged Ryan Pickren for his assistance with spotting the iCloud bug, in which “A local attacker may be able to elevate their privileges.”
Apple has also pushed the same security updates to iPhones and iPads in iOS 14.8.1 and iOS 15.1 and the first macOS 12.0.1 Monterey release.
To download the update, head over to System Preferences, click on Software Update, and select the Big Sur update. If you see Monterey in the window, click the More info… button to bypass the upgrade and see the latest update to Big Sur. Then click Install Now.