Path Traversal in Apple iOS and iPadOS

Publication date: 2026-09-14

Last updated on: 2026-09-14

Assigner: Apple Inc.

Description

A path traversal issue was addressed with improved input validation. This issue is fixed in iOS 26.7 and iPadOS 26.7, iOS 27 and iPadOS 27, watchOS 27. An app may be able to modify protected system files.

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-2026-86886

Affected Vendors & Products

Vendor	Product	Version / Range
apple	ios	26.7
apple	ipados	26.7
apple	ios	27
apple	ipados	27
apple	watchos	27

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE

KEV

CWE ID	Description
CWE-UNKNOWN

Attack-Flow Graph

Executive Summary

This is a path traversal vulnerability where an app could potentially access or modify files outside its intended directory due to insufficient input validation. The issue was addressed in specific iOS, iPadOS, and watchOS versions.

Impact Analysis

An attacker could exploit this to modify protected system files, potentially leading to unauthorized changes, data corruption, or system instability on affected devices running vulnerable versions of iOS, iPadOS, or watchOS.

Mitigation Strategies

Update affected Apple devices to iOS 26.7 or later, iPadOS 26.7 or later, iOS 27 or later, iPadOS 27 or later, or watchOS 27 or later to address the path traversal issue.

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