iOS 17 iPhones Vulnerable to Bluetooth Spamming Crash Attacks with Flipper Zero Device

Latest iOS update leaves iPhones vulnerable to Bluetooth spam attacks by Flipper Zero device; only solution currently is to disable Bluetooth, potentially disrupting use of peripherals like AirPods and Apple Watches.

The latest iOS 17 update leaves iPhones vulnerable to Bluetooth spam attacks initiated by the affordable device Flipper Zero, that can incapacitate the smartphone by overwhelming it with Bluetooth pairing requests leading to frequent crashes and reboots.
Dubbed a 'digital Swiss Army Knife', the Flipper Zero has advanced wireless capabilities allowing it to interact with a wide range of wireless systems, touted as a 'portable multi-tool for pen-testers and geeks', and has been on the market since 2020.
Devices like the Flipper Zero increase cybersecurity threats by providing functionalities in an accessible and user-friendly form that traditionally would require specialised hardware and skills.
While the attack affects all updated iPhones running on iOS 17, it does not affect iPhones running on its predecessor iOS 16, indicating changes in the latest OS update made the iPhones susceptible to such attacks.
Currently, the only workaround to these Bluetooth spam attacks is to disable Bluetooth on the iPhone, thereby incurring the inconvenience of potentially disrupting the connection to peripherals like AirPods and Apple Watches.