Earlier this month, Neowin reported that Microsoft Defender for Android would be retired on Android 10 and below. Now, we can tell you that Defender is also being retired on devices running iOS 16 or below. The Redmond giant explained that support will end on April 30, 2026, so to stay protected, you need to be on iOS 17 or higher by that date.
Microsoft said that it’s making this move to align with the iOS platform lifecycle and ensure customers get the most up-to-date security capabilities. After this date, iOS 16 devices will no longer receive feature updates, security fixes, or technical support. You also won’t be able to perform new installs on iOS 16 devices after support ends. For this reason, organizations should look for any affected devices and encourage upgrades or replacements.
Admins do not need to take any action with regards to this change, however Microsoft does recommend taking the following actions to prepare for end of support:
- Identify iOS 16 devices using your organization’s device management tools.
- Encourage users to upgrade eligible devices to iOS 17 or later.
- Replace devices that cannot be upgraded, if necessary.
- Update internal documentation and support team guidance.
- Notify impacted users about the upcoming end of support.
iPhones that will lose access to Defender, due to their inability to upgrade to iOS 17 are the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and the iPhone X. These devices all came out in 2017, so they are basically antiques at this point that probably need upgrading anyway. With that said, the deprecation of Defender on iOS 16 could hit businesses in the pocket right when economics are feeling the most pain.
One thing that Microsoft didn’t mention is whether telemetry and reporting will continue to work from iOS 16 devices while they are still being used. For any admins that are not rushing to update devices, it’ll be important to be on the lookout for any potential cutoff for telemetry and reporting compatibility with the Microsoft Defender XDR dashboard.
You can read more on the Microsoft 365 Admin Center under message ID MC1245219.