CVE-2026-113936 in macOS
Summary
by MITRE • 10/26/2026
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved bounds checking. This issue is fixed in macOS Golden Gate 27.2. An app may be able to cause unexpected system termination.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/26/2026
The vulnerability described involves an out-of-bounds read condition within the operating system, specifically affecting versions of macOS prior to Golden Gate 27.2. This type of memory safety issue typically arises when a software component accesses data at a memory address that lies outside the intended buffer or array boundaries. In this specific instance, the flaw was addressed by implementing improved bounds checking mechanisms, which ensure that any access to memory regions is validated against predefined limits before execution proceeds. The absence of such checks allows an application to read sensitive information from adjacent memory locations that were not intended for public consumption, potentially exposing internal system states or other process data.
From a technical perspective, out-of-bounds reads are classified under CWE-125, which denotes Out-of-bounds Read. This weakness occurs when software reads past the end of an allocated buffer, leading to unpredictable behavior depending on what data resides in those adjacent memory locations. While often less severe than write vulnerabilities that allow code execution, read vulnerabilities can still be exploited for information disclosure or as a precursor to more complex attacks if combined with other flaws. The operational impact noted is that an app may cause unexpected system termination. This suggests that the out-of-bounds access likely triggered a segmentation fault or a similar fatal exception within the kernel or critical system services, resulting in a denial of service condition where the affected component crashes and potentially forces a reboot or loss of user work if not handled gracefully by higher-level recovery mechanisms.
In terms of threat modeling and industry standards, this vulnerability aligns with MITRE ATT&CK techniques related to Discovery and Impact. Specifically, it can be associated with T1083 File and Directory Discovery if the read is used to enumerate system files or configurations, although in this case, the primary outcome appears to be stability disruption rather than data exfiltration. The unexpected termination indicates a failure in error handling resilience, allowing a local application to degrade system availability by triggering crashes through malformed inputs or specific API calls that exploit the unchecked memory access.
To mitigate such vulnerabilities, developers must enforce strict input validation and ensure all array indices are verified against buffer sizes before dereferencing pointers. Static analysis tools and fuzzing should be employed during the development lifecycle to detect boundary condition errors early. For end-users and system administrators, applying the latest security updates is critical; in this case, upgrading to macOS Golden Gate 27.2 or later ensures that the improved bounds checking logic is active, thereby neutralizing the exploit vector. Additionally, enabling memory protection features such as Address Space Layout Randomization (ASLR) and Data Execution Prevention (DEP) can further reduce the likelihood of successful exploitation by making it harder for attackers to predict memory layouts and execute arbitrary code even if a crash occurs.