CVE-2026-86962 in iOS
Summary
by MITRE • 10/20/2026
A double 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, tvOS 27, visionOS 27, watchOS 27. An app may be able to cause unexpected system termination.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/20/2026
The vulnerability described involves a double free error within the memory management subsystem of Apple operating systems including iOS iPadOS macOS and related platforms. This type of flaw occurs when a program attempts to deallocate or release a block of memory that has already been freed by another part of the application or system process. In standard programming practices each allocated memory region should have exactly one corresponding free operation to ensure data integrity and prevent corruption. When this rule is violated the internal structures used by the operating system to track memory allocations become inconsistent leading to undefined behavior during subsequent operations on that memory space.
From a technical perspective double free vulnerabilities are classified under CWE-415 which denotes Double Free in Common Weakness Enumeration standards. This category of weakness typically arises due to poor error handling logic or race conditions where multiple threads attempt to access and release the same resource concurrently without proper synchronization mechanisms such as mutexes or atomic operations. The presence of this flaw indicates a deficiency in how the affected software manages lifecycle events for dynamic memory resources particularly during cleanup routines or exception paths that may trigger premature deallocation before all references are properly nullified.
The operational impact of exploiting this vulnerability can vary depending on the context but generally includes application instability and potential denial of service conditions as noted by the unexpected system termination mentioned in the report. An attacker who can influence the execution flow to trigger the double free condition might cause the affected process or even the entire operating environment to crash resulting in loss of availability for legitimate users. While immediate code execution is not guaranteed through a simple double free it creates an opportunity for further exploitation if combined with other weaknesses such as heap corruption techniques that allow attackers to manipulate memory layout and potentially achieve arbitrary read write primitives leading to privilege escalation or remote code execution scenarios.
Mitigation strategies primarily involve the software updates provided by Apple which address these issues in iOS 26.7 iPadOS 26.7 iOS 27 iPadOS 27 macOS Golden Gate 27 macOS Sequoia 15.8 macOS Tahoe 26.7 tvOS 27 visionOS 27 and watchOS 27. Administrators should ensure that all devices are patched to the latest stable release available for their respective platform versions to eliminate exposure to this memory management flaw. For developers integrating third-party components or custom code it is critical to implement robust resource tracking mechanisms such as reference counting with careful handling of zeroing out pointers after deallocation and utilizing static analysis tools alongside dynamic testing frameworks like AddressSanitizer during development phases to detect similar patterns before deployment.
In terms of threat intelligence mapping this vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK techniques related to initial exploitation via memory corruption although specific tactics depend on the attack vector which is not detailed in the brief description. Security teams should monitor for indicators of compromise that suggest attempts to trigger crashes or abnormal behavior within system services potentially indicative of fuzzing activities targeting these known weak points. Continuous monitoring and adherence to secure coding guidelines remain essential defenses against such low-level memory errors that undermine system reliability and security posture across mobile and desktop environments.