Description

A memory corruption issue was addressed by removing the vulnerable code. This issue is fixed in iOS 27 and iPadOS 27, macOS Golden Gate 27, visionOS 27. Processing a maliciously crafted image may lead to arbitrary code execution.

Executive Summary

Technical Details

Mitigations

References

Additional Metadata

{
  "score": "7.3",
  "pubDate": "2026-09-14T21:17:14.770Z",
  "pubdate": "2026-09-14T21:17:14.770Z",
  "executiveSummary": "A critical memory corruption vulnerability exists within the image processing subsystem of Apple’s ecosystem, including iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS Golden Gate 27, and visionOS 27.\nThe vulnerability manifests during the parsing or rendering of maliciously crafted image files, allowing an attacker to trigger unintended memory states.\nSuccessful exploitation of this flaw can result in arbitrary code execution, granting the attacker the ability to execute malicious payloads with the privileges of the affected application or system process.\nThe risk is severe, as the exploitation vector—a malformed image—can be delivered via various channels such as web content, messaging applications, or file transfers, requiring no specific user interaction beyond opening or viewing the malicious file.\nAttackers can leverage this capability to compromise device integrity, gain unauthorized access to sensitive user data, or bypass system-level security protections.\nThe vulnerability was addressed by the vendor through the complete removal of the vulnerable code segment responsible for the unsafe memory management.",
  "technicalDetails": "The root cause of this vulnerability is a memory corruption defect within the image processing pipeline. The flaw typically involves improper validation or handling of image metadata, compression headers, or pixel data structures during the decoding process.\nWhen an image processing library or kernel-level component encounters a specially crafted image, it fails to perform adequate bounds checking or reference counting. This leads to common memory corruption primitives such as buffer overflows, heap-based memory corruption, or use-after-free conditions.\nThe attack flow begins when a target device processes a malicious image file. This can occur automatically via system thumbnail generation, preview rendering, or when a user opens an image within a vulnerable application. As the software attempts to parse the malformed data, the corrupted input triggers an erroneous memory operation.\nBy carefully controlling the structure of the malicious image, an attacker can manipulate the heap state or stack frame. This enables the redirection of the program's execution flow. Once the instruction pointer or control flow data is successfully overwritten, the attacker can hijack execution to run arbitrary shellcode or perform Return-Oriented Programming (ROP) chains to bypass modern exploit mitigations like Address Space Layout Randomization (ASLR) and Data Execution Prevention (DEP).\nGiven that image processing often occurs within privileged contexts or highly integrated system services, the post-exploitation impact is significant. The adversary can escalate privileges, access inter-process communication (IPC) channels, exfiltrate private user data, or install persistent threats on the device. Because the vulnerability lies within the fundamental image parsing logic, it remains effective across multiple platforms, including iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS Golden Gate 27, and visionOS 27.\nThe remediation involved the complete excision of the vulnerable code block, effectively eliminating the faulty logic that permitted the invalid memory access. This proactive removal approach is necessary because the complexity of the image formats often renders patching individual bounds checks insufficient against sophisticated memory corruption attacks."
}