Apple has blocked eight weak website security certificates from India's eMudhra. Most people are covered, but Mac command-line users still have a gap.
Apple has blocked a set of website security certificates after a researcher found they were weak. The certificates come from eMudhra, a company in India. For most iPhone and Mac owners, the block is already in place and nothing more is needed.
A website certificate works like an ID card. It helps your device confirm a site is the real one. Earlier this month, a researcher found that private keys tied to eight of eMudhra's certificates were weak. Attackers could have used them to impersonate legitimate websites. There is no evidence that anyone did.
Since October 19, Apple has blocked these certificates in Safari, Mail and apps that use Apple's networking and security tools. It happens automatically, with no software update. Other browser makers, including those behind Chrome, Edge and Firefox, have also acted.
Some macOS command-line tools can still accept the bad certificates. These are text-based tools mostly used by system administrators, not by everyday users. Apple says a macOS update will fix this, but it has not given a release date.
Until then, Apple has described a workaround that involves the /etc/ssl/cert.pem file. The steps are in the alert box above, and Apple's support document has the full details.
What is not yet known is when the update will arrive. Anyone who manages Macs should watch for it and install it when it ships.
If you only use Safari, Mail and regular apps, you are covered. Mac admins using command-line tools should apply Apple's workaround until the update arrives.
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