Boxed question marks instead of text on iPad Pro

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Level 1

8 points

Boxed question marks instead of text on iPad Pro

I`m seeing text replaced by boxed question marks in different apps and mail. Most pages and apps work normally, but on some apps and some individual emails and web pages most text is replaced by boxed question marks. Some apps are totally useless because of this and some emails are unreadable.

The problem seemed to start spontaneously during a visit to a safe web site that I use daily using a secure connection. I`ve tried restarting the iPad and removing and reinstalling some apps. I have also removed the emoji keyboard. These didn`t help. Any suggestions?

iPad Pro, iPadOS 15

Posted on Dec 25, 2021 11:30 PM

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Answer 1

Best reply

SnickZ.

Community Specialist

Dec 27, 2021 9:43 AM in response to pro_pc_user

Thanks for letting us know pro_pc_user,

It looks like your iPad needs updating to iPadOS 15.2. Do you have a recent backup for the data in your iPad in iCloud or your computer? If not, we recommend that you create one as described here: How to back up your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch

Then update your iPadOS as outlined here: Update your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch

If you're unable to update on your own, we recommend reaching out to the IT department of the company managing the iPad to allow access to update.

Cheers!

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Answer 2

Brian_P7

Community Specialist

Dec 26, 2021 5:41 PM in response to pro_pc_user

Hello pro_pc_user,

Thank you for reaching out to Apple Support Communities, and we'll be happy to help in any way we can. We understand you're having issues with text being replaced with question marks on your iPad in some of the apps you have, as well as emails. You've taken great steps to try to resolve the issue so far. Which exact version of iPadOS 15 are you updated to under Settings > General > About?

Does this occur in any native apps on your iPad, or does this only occur in apps you've installed from the App Store?

We hope this helps.

Cheers!

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Answer 3

pro_pc_user Author

Level 1

8 points

Dec 26, 2021 11:16 PM in response to Brian_P7

Hi Brian_P7,

The iPadOS version is 15.1. This is the latest one available to me, as this device is supervised by an organization although it is in my personal use. As far as I know, we`ve got hundreds of iPads in similar configuration under supervision and this is the only one affected. In addition, the problem started seemingly out of nowhere and there were no updates or installations performed prior to this issue.

It seems that none of the native apps are affected, if Mail doesn`t count as one. I`ve noticed problems in some emails using both Mail and Outlook. With these, the issue is limited to some content of some emails, not all emails. There are problems with some web pages using Safari. The main text content (body) is typically visible, but text in buttons may be replaced with question marks. The biggest issue is with one specific app containing hundreds of pages of technical manuals, where also the body text is replaced with question marks. This app is available via the App store.

I`ve got only the English and my local keyboard installed as well as the reinstalled emoji keyboard. I haven`t installed any additional Fonts (Settings - general - Fonts: ”No Fonts Installed).

I hope this answered your questions.

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Answer 4

pro_pc_user Author

Level 1

8 points

Jan 17, 2022 12:28 AM in response to SnickZ.

Hi,

Thank you. My company finally managed to release the iPadOS 15.2, and after the update everything is working fine again. I suppose the problem was then a known issue related to iPadOS 15.1.

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Boxed question marks instead of text on iPad Pro

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