Apple customers have received emails that starting in December, device backups over iCloud backup will require their iPhone or iPad to have iOS 9 or any later version of the iOS, and anything lower like the iOS 8 and devices with earlier versions will no longer be supported. Apple will also take down any existing iCloud backups that the device contains in the process. Stored data and apps in the iPhone or iPad running on iOS 8 won’t be touched and users can manually backup the devices using a Windows PC or a Mac.
These changes will be implemented next month on December 18, so it is advised for people who own Apple devices running on iOS 8 or an iPhone or iPad with an earlier version to update to iOS 9 or later if it’s possible. Apple stated that dropping support puts the company in alignment with their minimum software requirements. iOS 9 stopped the use of the old system and has acquired CloudKit for future backups.
