CVE-2025-31253
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 · uneditedThis issue was addressed through improved state management. This issue is fixed in iOS 18.5 and iPadOS 18.5. Muting the microphone during a FaceTime call may not result in audio being silenced.
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 confidenceA state management flaw in FaceTime on iOS 18.4 and earlier causes the microphone mute function to fail to properly silence audio. When a user engages the mute button during a FaceTime call, the UI reflects the muted state but audio continues to be captured and transmitted due to improper state tracking.
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< 18.5< 18.5CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check iOS versionOpen Settings > General > About and locate the version number (e.g., 18.4.1, 18.3.2)Affected if Version number is less than 18.5 (e.g., 18.4.x, 18.3.x, any version before 18.5)
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Check iPadOS version if applicableOn iPad, open Settings > General > About and locate the version numberAffected if Version number is less than 18.5 and the device is an iPad
Device is affected if running any iOS or iPadOS version earlier than 18.5, as the FaceTime microphone mute state management flaw exists in those versions.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 · scoped18.5
Update affected iOS/iPadOS devices to version 18.5 or later to receive the state management fix.
iOS 18.5 and iPadOS 18.5
- Back up your iPhone or iPad using iCloud or your computer before proceeding with the update
- Ensure your device is connected to a stable Wi-Fi network and has at least 50% battery or is plugged into a power source
- On your device, go to Settings > General > Software Update
- Tap on iOS 18.5 / iPadOS 18.5 to download and install the update
- Follow the on-screen prompts to complete the installation
- After the device restarts, verify the update was successful by checking Settings > General > About > Version
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-31253 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-31253 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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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.
- 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