CVE-2025-24251 is a vulnerability affecting Apple watchOS, as well as other Apple operating systems including macOS, iPadOS, iOS, tvOS, and visionOS. The core issue involves an attacker on the local network being able to cause an unexpected termination of applications running on the affected watchOS devices. The vulnerability stems from insufficient validation or improper handling of certain inputs or network interactions, as indicated by the reference to CWE-476 (NULL Pointer Dereference), which typically leads to application crashes. The flaw was addressed by Apple through improved input validation and checks in the affected operating systems, with patches released in watchOS 11.4 and corresponding updates for other Apple platforms. The vulnerability has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 6.5, categorized as medium severity, with the vector indicating that the attack requires local network access (AV:A), low attack complexity (AC:L), no privileges required (PR:N), no user interaction (UI:N), unchanged scope (S:U), no impact on confidentiality or integrity (C:N, I:N), but high impact on availability (A:H). This means the attacker can cause denial of service by crashing apps without needing authentication or user interaction, but cannot access or modify data. No known exploits are currently reported in the wild. The vulnerability affects unspecified versions of watchOS prior to 11.4 and other Apple OS versions prior to their respective patch releases. The issue is primarily a denial-of-service vector through local network exploitation, potentially disrupting the normal operation of watchOS applications and user experience.

For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2025-24251 is the potential disruption of services and workflows relying on Apple watchOS devices. Since the vulnerability allows local network attackers to cause app crashes without authentication or user interaction, environments where Apple Watches are used for critical notifications, health monitoring, or enterprise applications could experience interruptions. This could affect sectors such as healthcare, finance, and manufacturing where wearable devices are increasingly integrated for real-time monitoring and alerts. Although the vulnerability does not compromise confidentiality or integrity, the availability impact could lead to loss of productivity, missed alerts, or delayed responses. In corporate networks with segmented or secure local networks, the risk is somewhat mitigated, but in open or poorly segmented Wi-Fi environments, the threat is more pronounced. Additionally, since the attack requires local network access, organizations with strong network access controls and monitoring can reduce exposure. However, in public or semi-public spaces (e.g., offices with guest Wi-Fi), attackers could exploit this vulnerability to cause denial of service on employee devices. The impact on consumer users in Europe is similar, potentially causing app instability and degraded user experience.

1. Ensure all Apple devices, including watchOS, iOS, macOS, iPadOS, tvOS, and visionOS, are updated promptly to the patched versions (watchOS 11.4 and corresponding OS updates). 2. Enforce strict network segmentation and access controls to limit local network access only to trusted devices, reducing the attack surface for local network-based exploits. 3. Implement network monitoring and anomaly detection to identify unusual traffic patterns or repeated connection attempts that could indicate exploitation attempts. 4. Disable or restrict guest Wi-Fi access in corporate environments or isolate guest networks from internal device networks to prevent local network attackers from reaching Apple devices. 5. Educate users about the importance of installing updates promptly and maintaining secure network practices, especially when connecting to public or untrusted networks. 6. For critical environments relying on Apple Watch applications, consider deploying additional endpoint protection or application monitoring to detect and respond to unexpected app terminations. 7. Collaborate with Apple support or enterprise management tools to verify device compliance and patch status across the organization.