dbcve.org
IpadosOperating system · Apple

CVE-2025-24230

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-03-31
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 2.4 / 13.7.5 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
An out-of-bounds read issue was addressed with improved input validation. This issue is fixed in iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4, iPadOS 17.7.6, macOS Sequoia 15.4, macOS Sonoma 14.7.5, macOS Ventura 13.7.5, tvOS 18.4, visionOS 2.4, watchOS 11.4. Playing a malicious audio file may lead to an unexpected app termination.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

A vulnerability in Apple's audio processing component allows an out-of-bounds read when playing a specially crafted malicious audio file. The flaw is due to insufficient input validation, which can cause memory access beyond allocated buffers, leading to application termination or potential code execution.

MitigationApply vendor patches by updating all affected Apple devices to iOS 18.4, iPadOS 17.7.6+, macOS 13.7.5+, tvOS 18.4, visionOS 2.4, or watchOS 11.4 as appropriate.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
IpadosOperating system
Affected:< 17.7.6>= 18.0, < 18.4
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:< 18.4
macOSOperating system
Affected:>= 13.0, < 13.7.5>= 14.0, < 14.7.5>= 15.0, < 15.4
TvosOperating system
Affected:< 18.4
VisionosOperating system
Affected:< 2.4

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify iPhone or iPad OS version
    On iPhone: go to Settings > General > About > Software Version. On iPad: go to Settings > General > About > iPadOS Version. Record the exact version number displayed.
    Affected if The version is < 17.7.6, or >= 18.0 and < 18.4, or < 18.4 for iPhone OS.
  2. Identify macOS version
    Click the Apple menu > About This Mac. Note the version number (for example, 14.7.4 or 15.3.1).
    Affected if The version is >= 13.0 and < 13.7.5, or >= 14.0 and < 14.7.5, or >= 15.0 and < 15.4.
  3. Identify tvOS version
    Go to Settings > General > About > Version on Apple TV. Record the tvOS version number.
    Affected if The version is < 18.4.
  4. Identify visionOS version
    Go to Settings > General > About on Apple Vision Pro. Note the visionOS version.
    Affected if The version is < 2.4.
  5. Confirm audio playback capability
    Attempt to play an audio file using the built-in Music or Audio app on the device to confirm the audio processing component is accessible and functional.
    Affected if The device can play audio files (the vulnerability is triggered when playing a specially crafted malicious audio file).

A device is affected if its OS version falls within any of the vulnerable version ranges listed for its platform, and the device has the capability to process audio files.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 2.4 / 13.7.5 / 14.7.5 or later
Fixed in 2.413.7.514.7.5
Interim mitigation

Apply vendor patches by updating all affected Apple devices to iOS 18.4, iPadOS 17.7.6+, macOS 13.7.5+, tvOS 18.4, visionOS 2.4, or watchOS 11.4 as appropriate.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS 18.4, iPadOS 17.7.6, iPadOS 18.4, macOS Ventura 13.7.5, macOS Sonoma 14.7.5, macOS Sequoia 15.4, tvOS 18.4, visionOS 2.4, watchOS 11.4

  1. For iOS devices: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install iOS 18.4
  2. For iPadOS devices: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install iPadOS 17.7.6 (if on iPadOS 17.x) or iPadOS 18.4 (if on iOS 18)
  3. For macOS Ventura (13.x): Go to System Settings > General > Software Update and install macOS Ventura 13.7.5
  4. For macOS Sonoma (14.x): Go to System Settings > General > Software Update and install macOS Sonoma 14.7.5
  5. For macOS Sequoia (15.x): Go to System Settings > General > Software Update and install macOS Sequoia 15.4
  6. For tvOS devices: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install tvOS 18.4
  7. For visionOS devices: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install visionOS 2.4
  8. After updating, verify the fix by playing audio files from trusted sources only until the update is confirmed installed
Caveat Standard Apple minor version updates typically contain only security fixes; no major functional changes expected

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Ipados Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-24230 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data