Use After Free in Apple iOS and macOS

Publication date: 2026-09-14

Last updated on: 2026-09-14

Assigner: Apple Inc.

Description

A use after free issue was addressed with improved memory management. This issue is fixed in iOS 26.7 and iPadOS 26.7, iOS 27 and iPadOS 27, macOS Golden Gate 27, macOS Sequoia 15.8, macOS Tahoe 26.7, visionOS 27. An app may be able to cause unexpected system termination.

CVSS Scores

EPSS Scores

Probability:
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Meta Information

Published

2026-09-14

Last Modified

2026-09-14

Generated

2026-09-15

AI Q&A

2026-09-15

EPSS Evaluated

N/A

NVD

CVE-2026-84521

Affected Vendors & Products

Vendor	Product	Version / Range
apple	ios	to 26.7 (inc)
apple	ipados	to 26.7 (inc)
apple	ios	27
apple	ipados	27
apple	macos	golden_gate
apple	macos	sequoia
apple	macos	to 26.7 (inc)
apple	visionos	27

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE

KEV

CWE ID	Description
CWE-UNKNOWN

Attack-Flow Graph

Executive Summary

This is a use after free vulnerability caused by improper memory management. The issue occurs when a program continues to use memory after it has been freed, potentially leading to crashes or unexpected behavior. Apple addressed it by improving memory handling in iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and visionOS updates.

Impact Analysis

An attacker could exploit this to cause an app to crash or terminate unexpectedly. This may lead to data loss, denial of service, or in some cases, allow further malicious activity if combined with other vulnerabilities.

Mitigation Strategies

Update affected systems to the latest patched versions: iOS 26.7 or later, iPadOS 26.7 or later, iOS 27 or later, iPadOS 27 or later, macOS Golden Gate 27, macOS Sequoia 15.8, macOS Tahoe 26.7, or visionOS 27.

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