CVE-2026-20617
Race Condition in Apple OSes Allows Root Privilege Escalation
Publication date: 2026-02-11
Last updated on: 2026-04-02
Assigner: Apple Inc.
Description
Description
CVSS Scores
EPSS Scores
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| Percentile: |
Meta Information
Affected Vendors & Products
| Vendor | Product | Version / Range |
|---|---|---|
| apple | ipados | to 26.3 (exc) |
| apple | iphone_os | to 26.3 (exc) |
| apple | tvos | to 26.3 (exc) |
| apple | visionos | to 26.3 (exc) |
| apple | watchos | to 26.3 (exc) |
| apple | macos | From 26.0 (inc) to 26.3 (exc) |
| apple | macos | From 14.0 (inc) to 14.8.4 (exc) |
Helpful Resources
Exploitability
| CWE ID | Description |
|---|---|
| CWE-362 | The product contains a concurrent code sequence that requires temporary, exclusive access to a shared resource, but a timing window exists in which the shared resource can be modified by another code sequence operating concurrently. |
Attack-Flow Graph
AI Powered Q&A
Can you explain this vulnerability to me?
This vulnerability is a race condition issue that was addressed by improving state handling in the affected Apple operating systems.
Due to this race condition, an application may be able to gain root privileges, which means it could execute actions with the highest level of system access.
How can this vulnerability impact me? :
If exploited, this vulnerability could allow an app to gain root privileges on your device.
Gaining root privileges means the app could potentially control or modify any part of the system, leading to unauthorized access, data manipulation, or other malicious activities.
How does this vulnerability affect compliance with common standards and regulations (like GDPR, HIPAA)?:
I don't know
How can this vulnerability be detected on my network or system? Can you suggest some commands?
I don't know
What immediate steps should I take to mitigate this vulnerability?
To mitigate this vulnerability, update your Apple devices to the fixed versions of the operating systems as soon as possible.
- Update watchOS to version 26.3 or later.
- Update tvOS to version 26.3 or later.
- Update macOS Tahoe to version 26.3 or later.
- Update macOS Sonoma to version 14.8.4 or later.
- Update visionOS to version 26.3 or later.
- Update iOS and iPadOS to version 26.3 or later.