VulnerabilityPublished 16 Sep 2024Updated 2 Apr 2026

CVE-2024-40840: Apple iOS and iPadOS · An attacker with physical access may be able to use Siri to access sensitive user data

Affects Apple iOS and iPadOSSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 4.6 Medium.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 14:05 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

4.6Medium

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 19% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

CVSS:3.1/AV:P/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

Attack Vector: Physical
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: None
Availability: None

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Physical: The attack requires the attacker to physically touch or manipulate the vulnerable component. Physical interaction may be brief or persistent.
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: None: The attacker is unauthorized prior to attack, and therefore does not require any access to settings or files to carry out an attack.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: High: There is total loss of confidentiality, resulting in all resources within the impacted component being divulged to the attacker. Alternatively, access to only some restricted information is obtained, but the disclosed information presents a direct, serious impact.
Integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the impacted component.
Availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 16 Sep 2024
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Apple iOS and iPadOS	Affected =0	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

To mitigate CVE-2024-40840, organizations and users should immediately update all affected Apple devices to iOS 18 or iPadOS 18 or later, where the vulnerability is fixed. Additionally, enforcing strong physical security controls to prevent unauthorized access to devices is critical, including policies for device handling, storage, and transport. Enabling device encryption and strong passcodes can further reduce risk by limiting what Siri can access when the device is locked. Disabling Siri access from the lock screen can also mitigate exposure by preventing voice assistant activation without authentication. Organizations should implement mobile device management (MDM) solutions to enforce these settings and monitor device compliance. Training users on the risks of leaving devices unattended and the importance of prompt updates is also recommended. Finally, consider restricting sensitive data access on mobile devices or using secure containers to limit data exposure in case of physical compromise.

Description

This issue was addressed through improved state management. This issue is fixed in iOS 18 and iPadOS 18. An attacker with physical access may be able to use Siri to access sensitive user data.

Impact

The primary impact of CVE-2024-40840 is the unauthorized disclosure of sensitive user data on Apple iOS and iPadOS devices. Since the attacker must have physical access, the threat is particularly relevant in scenarios involving lost, stolen, or temporarily unattended devices. Confidentiality is compromised as sensitive information accessible via Siri can be extracted without unlocking the device. Integrity and availability are not directly affected. For organizations, this vulnerability could lead to data breaches involving employee or customer information if devices are not properly secured. The risk is heightened in environments where devices contain sensitive corporate data or are used for privileged communications. Although exploitation requires physical access, the lack of need for authentication or user interaction lowers the barrier for attackers who gain possession of a device. This could facilitate espionage, identity theft, or unauthorized data harvesting.

References

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 2 Apr 2026, 23:36 UTC

Technical details

References

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