dbcve.org
IpadosOperating system · Apple

CVE-2025-43346

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-09-15
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 18.7 / 26.0 or later.
See remediation →
58/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
No privileges

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 access issue was addressed with improved bounds checking. This issue is fixed in iOS 18.7 and iPadOS 18.7, iOS 26 and iPadOS 26, macOS Tahoe 26, tvOS 26, visionOS 26, watchOS 26. Processing a maliciously crafted media file may lead to unexpected app termination or corrupt process memory.

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

Out-of-bounds memory access vulnerability in Apple's media processing framework. Processing a maliciously crafted media file can trigger the vulnerability, leading to either denial of service (unexpected app termination) or memory corruption (process memory corruption) due to insufficient bounds checking.

MitigationApply vendor-supplied security updates (iOS 18.7/26, iPadOS 18.7/26, macOS Tahoe 26, tvOS 26, visionOS 26, watchOS 26) to all affected devices. No configuration workarounds available; patching is the only remediation.

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:< 18.7
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:< 18.7
macOSOperating system
Affected:< 26.0
TvosOperating system
Affected:< 26.0
VisionosOperating system
Affected:< 26.0
WatchosOperating system
Affected:< 26.0

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/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 checks

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

  1. Check iOS version on iPhone
    Open Settings > General > About and note the version number under 'Version'
    Affected if Version is below 18.7 (for example, 18.6.x or earlier)
  2. Check iPadOS version on iPad
    Open Settings > General > About and note the version number under 'Version'
    Affected if Version is below 18.7 (for example, 18.6.x or earlier)
  3. Check macOS version on Mac
    Click the Apple menu > About This Mac, or run 'sw_vers -productVersion' in Terminal
    Affected if Version is below 26.0 (for example, 25.x or earlier)
  4. Check tvOS version on Apple TV
    Go to Settings > General > About > Version
    Affected if Version is below 26.0 (for example, 25.x or earlier)
  5. Check watchOS version on Apple Watch
    On paired iPhone, open Watch app > My Watch > General > About, or on Watch go to Settings > General > About
    Affected if Version is below 26.0 (for example, 25.x or earlier)
  6. Check visionOS version on Apple Vision
    Go to Settings > General > About > Version
    Affected if Version is below 26.0 (for example, 25.x or earlier)

The device is affected if it runs any version of iOS/iPadOS below 18.7, or any version of macOS/tvOS/watchOS/visionOS below 26.0, since the vulnerability exists in the media processing framework and triggers when processing media 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 18.7 / 26.0 or later
Fixed in 18.726.0
Interim mitigation

Apply vendor-supplied security updates (iOS 18.7/26, iPadOS 18.7/26, macOS Tahoe 26, tvOS 26, visionOS 26, watchOS 26) to all affected devices. No configuration workarounds available; patching is the only remediation.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS 18.7/iPadOS 18.7, macOS Tahoe 26, tvOS 26, visionOS 26, watchOS 26

  1. Check current device version: On iPhone/iPad, go to Settings > General > About > Version. On Mac, go to Apple menu > About This Mac > Software Version. On Apple TV, go to Settings > General > About > Version. On Apple Watch, go to Settings > General > About > Watch Version. On Apple Vision Pro, go to Settings > General > About > Version.
  2. Back up your device using iCloud or Finder/iTunes before upgrading.
  3. On iPhone/iPad: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install the available update.
  4. On Mac: Go to System Settings > General > Software Update and install the available update.
  5. On Apple TV: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install the available update.
  6. On Apple Watch: On your iPhone, open the Watch app, go to My Watch > General > Software Update and install the available update.
  7. On Apple Vision Pro: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install the available update.
  8. After updating, verify the version matches or exceeds the fixed release: iOS 18.7/iPadOS 18.7, macOS 26.0 (Tahoe 26), tvOS 26, visionOS 26, or watchOS 26.
Caveat Standard upgrade risks apply - review release notes for known issues before updating; some legacy apps may be incompatible with major OS updates

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

Fix this in Ipados Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
4.0 hours of engineering $750
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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-2025-43346 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