Apple’s second beta of iOS 15.4, released on Tuesday, fixes a bug that sent iOS users’ voice recordings to Apple, even if the user had opted out of sending the recordings to Apple to improve Siri and dictation.
The bug first reared its ugly head with the release of iOS 15, which enabled the option to share Siri and dictation recordings with Apple, even if a user had previously opted out. This means Siri queries and voice dictation files are being stored and sent to Apple.
The iOS 15.2 switches the setting back off for many Siri users and Apple is assuring users that the erroneously sent messages are being deleted.
Apple explained the issue in a quote to ZDNet:
“With iOS 15.2, we turned off the Improve Siri & Dictation setting for many Siri users while we fixed a bug introduced with iOS 15. This bug inadvertently enabled the setting for a small portion of devices. Since identifying the bug, we stopped reviewing and are deleting audio received from all affected devices.”
When many users update to the beta of iOS 15.4, they will find that they’ll be asked if they want to opt-in to the program again.