Although iOS 13 is just around the corner, Apple continues to update iOS 12, and yesterday released iOS 12.4.
I suspect that a primary reason for the update was to restore a feature to the Apple Watch. When watchOS 5 was released in 2018, Apple added a Walkie-Talkie feature so that two people could easily talk to each other using their watches. But Apple disabled the feature earlier this month because Apple discovered a flaw that could be exploited to listen to another person’s watch without their permission. At the time, Apple told Matthew Panzarino of TechCrunch that it was not aware of the flaw ever being exploited, but obviously any such risk is unacceptable. Yesterday, Apple released watchOS 5.3 to restore the Walkie-Talkie feature, and Apple says that the feature only works if both watches are paired to an iPhone running iOS 12.4 and configured to use FaceTime.
iOS 12.4 also adds a few other features. It adds the ability to wirelessly transfer data and migrate directly from an old iPhone to a new iPhone during setup, something that I suspect many folks will do after Apple releases new iPhones later this year. It also adds some improvements to Apple News.
Even if those new features do not matter to you, it is always a good idea to update your iPhone and iPad to the latest version of the operating system to ensure that you are taking advantage of all of the latest security updates.