dbcve.org
IpadosOperating system · Apple

CVE-2026-20621

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-02-11
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 14.8.4 / 15.7.4 or later.
See remediation →
57/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
The issue was addressed with improved memory handling. This issue is fixed in iOS 18.7.5 and iPadOS 18.7.5, iOS 26.3 and iPadOS 26.3, macOS Sequoia 15.7.4, macOS Sonoma 14.8.4, macOS Tahoe 26.3, visionOS 26.3. An app may be able to cause unexpected system termination or corrupt kernel 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

A memory handling vulnerability in Apple's kernel allows a local malicious application to cause unexpected system termination (kernel panic) or corrupt kernel memory. This is a local privilege escalation/availability issue affecting iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and visionOS.

MitigationUpdate affected devices to iOS 18.7.5/iPadOS 18.7.5 or later, iOS 26.3/iPadOS 26.3 or later, macOS Sequoia 15.7.4/Sonoma 14.8.4/Tahoe 26.3 or later, and visionOS 26.3 or later.

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:< 26.3
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:< 26.3
macOSOperating system
Affected:< 14.8.4>= 15.0, < 15.7.4>= 26.0, < 26.3

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
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/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. Identify your Apple device type
    Determine whether the device is an iPhone, iPad, Mac, or visionOS device
    Affected if Device runs Apple operating system firmware
  2. Check iOS version on iPhone
    Go to Settings > General > About on iPhone, or run 'sw_vers' command in Terminal on macOS
    Affected if iOS version is less than 26.3
  3. Check iPadOS version on iPad
    Go to Settings > General > About on iPad, or run 'sw_vers' command in Terminal on macOS
    Affected if iPadOS version is less than 26.3
  4. Check macOS version on Mac
    Go to System Settings > General > About, or run 'sw_vers' command in Terminal
    Affected if macOS version is less than 14.8.4, OR between 15.0 and 15.7.4 inclusive, OR between 26.0 and 26.3 inclusive
  5. Check visionOS version on Apple Vision
    Go to Settings > General > About on the Vision device
    Affected if visionOS version is less than 26.3

If the installed OS version falls within any of the specified vulnerable ranges for your device type, your environment is affected by this kernel memory handling vulnerability.

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 14.8.4 / 15.7.4 / 26.3 or later
Fixed in 14.8.415.7.426.3
Interim mitigation

Update affected devices to iOS 18.7.5/iPadOS 18.7.5 or later, iOS 26.3/iPadOS 26.3 or later, macOS Sequoia 15.7.4/Sonoma 14.8.4/Tahoe 26.3 or later, and visionOS 26.3 or later.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS 18.7.5 / iOS 26.3, iPadOS 18.7.5 / iPadOS 26.3, macOS Sonoma 14.8.4 / macOS Sequoia 15.7.4 / macOS Tahoe 26.3, visionOS 26.3

  1. Open Settings > General > Software Update on iPhone or iPad
  2. Download and install the available iOS 18.7.5 or iOS 26.3 / iPadOS 18.7.5 or iPadOS 26.3 update
  3. For macOS, open System Settings > General > Software Update
  4. Download and install macOS Sonoma 14.8.4, macOS Sequoia 15.7.4, or macOS Tahoe 26.3 as appropriate for your system
  5. Restart the device after the update completes

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

Fix this in Ipados Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,520
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Scan for this in your stack

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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-2026-20621 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