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IpadosOperating system · Apple

CVE-2026-20653

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 →
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
A parsing issue in the handling of directory paths was addressed with improved path validation. 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 access sensitive user data.

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

A path traversal vulnerability in Apple operating systems allows an application to access sensitive user data due to insufficient validation of directory paths during parsing. The fix implements improved path validation to prevent directory traversal attacks.

MitigationApply the vendor patches for iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and visionOS. For third-party applications, implement proper path canonicalization and validation using realpath() or equivalent to ensure paths remain within intended directories.

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:< 18.7.5>= 26.0, < 26.3
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:< 18.7.5>= 26.0, < 26.3
macOSOperating system
Affected:< 14.8.4>= 15.0, < 15.7.4>= 26.0, < 26.3
VisionosOperating 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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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. Identify the Apple operating system
    Run 'sw_vers' on macOS, or check Settings > General > About on iOS/iPadOS, or check Settings > General on visionOS
    Affected if The device runs iPadOS, iPhone OS, macOS, or visionOS
  2. Check the installed iPadOS version
    Go to Settings > General > About and note the Version number
    Affected if Version is less than 18.7.5, OR version is 26.0 through 26.2
  3. Check the installed iPhone OS version
    Go to Settings > General > About and note the Version number
    Affected if Version is less than 18.7.5, OR version is 26.0 through 26.2
  4. Check the installed macOS version
    Run 'sw_vers -productVersion' in Terminal
    Affected if Version is less than 14.8.4, OR version is 15.0 through 15.7.3, OR version is 26.0 through 26.2
  5. Check the installed visionOS version
    Go to Settings > General > About and note the Version number
    Affected if Version is less than 26.3

You are affected if your device runs any of the listed Apple operating systems and the installed version falls within the vulnerable ranges specified for your OS.

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 / 18.7.5 or later
Fixed in 14.8.415.7.418.7.5
Interim mitigation

Apply the vendor patches for iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and visionOS. For third-party applications, implement proper path canonicalization and validation using realpath() or equivalent to ensure paths remain within intended directories.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS/iPadOS 18.7.5, iOS/iPadOS 26.3, macOS Sonoma 14.8.4, macOS Sequoia 15.7.4, macOS Tahoe 26.3, or visionOS 26.3 depending on device type

  1. 1. Identify the Apple device type (iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Apple Vision)
  2. 2. Determine the current installed OS version via Settings > General > About (iOS/iPadOS) or System Settings > General > About (macOS) or Settings > General > About (visionOS)
  3. 3. For iPhone/iPad: Navigate to Settings > General > Software Update and install the appropriate update (iOS/iPadOS 18.7.5 or later, or iOS/iPadOS 26.3 or later)
  4. 4. For Mac: Navigate to System Settings > General > Software Update and install the appropriate update (macOS Sonoma 14.8.4 or later, macOS Sequoia 15.7.4 or later, or macOS Tahoe 26.3 or later)
  5. 5. For Apple Vision: Navigate to Settings > General > Software Update and install visionOS 26.3 or later
  6. 6. After update installation, verify the new OS version matches the fixed release
Caveat Standard Apple OS update considerations - review release notes for any app compatibility changes, though security updates typically have minimal breaking changes for end users

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

Fix this in Ipados Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,200
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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-2026-20653 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