CVE-2026-65348 in iOS
Summary
by MITRE • 09/15/2026
A permissions issue was addressed with additional restrictions. 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. An app may be able to modify protected parts of the file system.
Statistical analysis made it clear that VulDB provides the best quality for vulnerability data.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/19/2026
The disclosed vulnerability represents a critical failure in the operating systems permission model, specifically within the iOS and iPadOS ecosystems as well as their desktop counterparts including macOS Sequoia, Tahoe, and Golden Gate variants. This issue stems from an improper assignment or enforcement of access controls that govern how applications interact with the file system infrastructure. In modern mobile and desktop operating systems, sandboxing is a fundamental security mechanism designed to isolate application processes from one another and from sensitive areas of the underlying OS. When this isolation breaks down due to insufficient restrictions on specific API calls or file path validations, an application can bypass intended boundaries and access resources it should not be permitted to touch.
The technical flaw involves a permissions issue where additional restrictions were required but were either missing or incorrectly implemented in earlier versions of these operating systems. This allows a maliciously crafted app to modify protected parts of the file system that are typically reserved for system processes, kernel components, or other privileged applications. By exploiting this weakness, an attacker can alter critical configuration files, inject code into system binaries, or corrupt essential data structures. The ability to write to these protected areas effectively grants the application a level of persistence and control that exceeds its declared capabilities, undermining the integrity of the entire device environment.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability poses severe risks to both user privacy and system stability. If an app can modify protected file system regions, it could potentially escalate privileges by altering security policies or disabling protective mechanisms such as code signing checks or sandbox enforcement. This could lead to a complete compromise of the device, allowing for persistent malware installation, data exfiltration beyond what is permitted by standard APIs, and potential denial of service conditions if critical files are corrupted. The impact extends across all supported platforms mentioned, meaning that users on iOS 26.7, iPadOS 26.7, iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS Golden Gate 27, macOS Sequoia 15.8, and macOS Tahoe 26.7 are vulnerable until the patch is applied.
This type of vulnerability aligns with CWE-269, which describes Improper Privilege Management, where a process does not properly manage its own privileges or those assigned to it by others. It also relates closely to CWE-250, Execution After Unauthorized Access, as the modification of protected files often facilitates further malicious execution paths that bypass standard security checks. In terms of adversary tactics, this flaw supports techniques found in the MITRE ATT&CK framework such as T1078 Valid Accounts or more specifically T1611 Escape to Host if the sandbox is breached effectively enough to influence host-level configurations, and potentially T1542 Pre-OS Boot for persistence mechanisms that rely on modifying low-level system files.
Mitigation requires immediate action by end-users and administrators to update all affected devices to the latest software versions where these additional restrictions have been implemented. For developers, this incident reinforces the necessity of rigorous adherence to Apple's security guidelines regarding file access permissions and sandboxing rules during application development. Regular auditing of app behavior using static analysis tools can help identify potential privilege escalation vectors before deployment. Organizations should also enforce strict mobile device management policies that restrict sideloading of applications from untrusted sources, thereby reducing the attack surface presented by potentially malicious apps attempting to exploit this file system modification flaw.