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IpadosOperating system · Apple

CVE-2026-20649

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-02-11
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 26.3 or later.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
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
A logging issue was addressed with improved data redaction. This issue is fixed in iOS 26.3 and iPadOS 26.3, macOS Tahoe 26.3, tvOS 26.3, watchOS 26.3. A user may be able to view sensitive user information.

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 · moderate confidence

This is a logging vulnerability in Apple's operating systems (iOS, iPadOS, macOS Tahoe, tvOS, watchOS) where sensitive user information was being logged without proper data redaction. The issue allows authenticated users to view sensitive information that should have been redacted from system logs.

MitigationApply the vendor-supplied software updates (iOS 26.3, iPadOS 26.3, macOS Tahoe 26.3, tvOS 26.3, watchOS 26.3) to resolve the improper logging redaction issue.

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:< 26.3
TvosOperating system
Affected:< 26.3
WatchosOperating system
Affected:< 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
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

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

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
    Go to Settings > General > About on the iPhone/iPad, or run 'sw_vers' via Terminal on macOS, or check tvOS/watchOS version in their respective Settings apps
    Affected if Version is earlier than 26.3 (for iOS, iPadOS) or earlier than 26.3 for macOS Tahoe, tvOS, or watchOS
  2. Check if System Logging is enabled
    On macOS, run 'sudo launchctl list | grep logd' to check log daemon status; on iOS/tvOS/watchOS, this is typically always enabled but check if any diagnostic logging profiles are installed
    Affected if Logging services are running and version is below 26.3
  3. Inspect system logs for sensitive data
    On macOS, run 'log show --predicate "eventMessage contains <sensitive_term>"' to search logs; on iOS, connect to Xcode and view device console logs
    Affected if Logs contain unredacted sensitive information (such as full credentials, personal data, or tokens that should have been masked) and OS version is below 26.3

You are affected if your device runs any of iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, or watchOS with a version number lower than 26.3 and sensitive data appears in system logs without redaction.

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 26.3 or later
Fixed in 26.3
Interim mitigation

Apply the vendor-supplied software updates (iOS 26.3, iPadOS 26.3, macOS Tahoe 26.3, tvOS 26.3, watchOS 26.3) to resolve the improper logging redaction issue.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

iOS 26.3, iPadOS 26.3, macOS Tahoe 26.3, tvOS 26.3, watchOS 26.3

  1. Identify the affected Apple device (iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, or Apple Watch)
  2. Check the current OS version on the device
  3. For iPhone/iPad: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and upgrade to iOS 26.3 or iPadOS 26.3
  4. For Mac: Go to System Settings > General > Software Update and upgrade to macOS Tahoe 26.3
  5. For Apple TV: Go to Settings > System > Software Updates and upgrade to tvOS 26.3
  6. For Apple Watch: Go to Settings > General > Software Update on the paired iPhone and upgrade to watchOS 26.3
  7. Verify the upgrade completed successfully by checking the OS version matches 26.3
Caveat Major OS version upgrade may include UI changes or remove support for older applications; backup data before upgrading

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-2026-20649 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