CVE-2026-65404 in iOS
Summary
by MITRE • 09/15/2026
An authorization issue was addressed with improved state management. This issue is fixed in iOS 18.7.10 and iPadOS 18.7.10, iOS 27 and iPadOS 27, macOS Golden Gate 27, macOS Sequoia 15.7.8, macOS Sonoma 14.8.8. A malicious application may be able to bypass Privacy preferences.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/15/2026
The disclosed vulnerability represents a critical authorization flaw rooted in inadequate state management within the operating system's privacy control mechanisms. This issue specifically affects the subsystem responsible for enforcing user-defined permissions and access controls, which serve as the primary defense against unauthorized data collection or surveillance by applications. The core technical deficiency lies in how the system maintains and validates the session state when an application requests sensitive privileges such as location services, camera access, microphone input, or contact list retrieval. By failing to properly synchronize these states across different execution contexts or during specific transition phases, the operating system allows a malicious actor to exploit race conditions or logic errors that circumvent the intended security boundaries. This type of flaw is characteristic of CWE-284 Improper Access Control and often relates to CWE-367 Time-of-check to Time-of-use (TOCTOU) vulnerabilities where the state checked at one moment becomes invalid by the time it is used, or more broadly falls under CWE-915 Improperly Controlled Modification of Dynamically-Determined Object Attributes.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe for end-users and enterprise environments alike. A malicious application capable of bypassing privacy preferences can operate with elevated privileges without explicit user consent or awareness. This enables the silent exfiltration of highly sensitive personal data, including precise geolocation history, private photographs, audio recordings from conversations, and detailed contact information. In an enterprise context, this could lead to corporate espionage if employees inadvertently grant access that is then exploited by compromised apps. The ability to bypass these controls undermines the fundamental trust model of mobile operating systems, where users rely on granular permission dialogs to maintain control over their digital footprint. Attackers can leverage this flaw to build persistent surveillance capabilities or to gather intelligence for further social engineering attacks, significantly increasing the risk profile associated with installing third-party software from untrusted sources.
From a threat actor perspective, exploiting this vulnerability aligns closely with tactics described in the MITRE ATT&CK framework, particularly those involving Collection and Exfiltration techniques such as Screen Capture (T1113) or Audio Capture (T1063). It also relates to Defense Evasion strategies where attackers manipulate system settings or permissions to avoid detection. The lack of proper state management allows the malicious code to maintain its privileged access even after initial checks have passed, facilitating long-term persistence and data harvesting without triggering standard security alerts that might otherwise flag anomalous permission usage patterns.
Mitigation for this vulnerability requires immediate action by deploying the provided software updates across all affected platforms including iOS 18.7.10, iPadOS 18.7.10, iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS Golden Gate 27, macOS Sequoia 15.7.8, and macOS Sonoma 14.8.8. These updates contain the necessary patches to correct the state management logic within the privacy subsystems. Organizations should enforce automated patching policies to ensure all devices are updated promptly. Additionally, users and administrators should adhere to the principle of least privilege by carefully reviewing application permissions before granting access to sensitive resources. Regular audits of installed applications and their permission settings can help identify any anomalous behavior that might indicate exploitation attempts. Security teams should also monitor for unusual network traffic patterns or background activity associated with apps that have been granted broad system-level privileges, as these could be indicators of compromise leveraging this specific authorization bypass technique.