VulnerabilityPublished 11 May 2026

CVE-2026-28974: Apple iOS and iPadOS · Improper Access Control

Affects Apple iOS and iPadOSSource CVE Database V5

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Not known to be exploited · CVSS 7.5 High : upgrade to 26.5 soon.

Data as of 30 Oct 2026, 06:59 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

7.5High

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

EPSS: 0.4% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 34% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 26.5, 15.7.7

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

Attack Vector: Network
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: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
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 11 May 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: 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 29 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.
Weaponized: A Metasploit exploit module or Exploit-DB entry exists (Metasploit scanner modules do not count), 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

Upgrade iOS and iPadOS and tvOS and visionOS and watchOS to 26.5; macOS to 26.5 or 15.7.7.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
AppleiOS and iPadOS	Affected <26.5	Fixed in 26.5
ApplemacOS	Affected <26.5	Fixed in 26.5
ApplemacOS	Affected <15.7.7	Fixed in 15.7.7
AppletvOS	Affected <26.5	Fixed in 26.5
ApplevisionOS	Affected <26.5	Fixed in 26.5
ApplewatchOS	Affected <26.5	Fixed in 26.5

AI-suggested

Apple has released official fixes in iOS 26.5, iPadOS 26.5, and corresponding versions of other Apple operating systems. Users and administrators should apply these updates promptly to remediate the vulnerability. Patch status is confirmed by the vendor advisory indicating the issue is fixed in the specified OS versions.

Description

CVE-2026-28974 is a high-severity vulnerability in Apple iOS and iPadOS that could allow an app to cause a denial-of-service condition. The issue was addressed by Apple through improved checks to prevent unauthorized actions. The vulnerability affects multiple Apple operating systems and is fixed in iOS 26.5, iPadOS 26.5, and other related OS versions. There are no known exploits in the wild at this time.

Impact

An unprivileged app could exploit this vulnerability to cause a denial-of-service condition on affected Apple devices, potentially disrupting normal device operation. The impact is limited to availability disruption without direct impact on integrity or confidentiality. There are no known active exploits in the wild.

Summary

This vulnerability (CVE-2026-28974) involves a flaw in Apple iOS and iPadOS that could allow a malicious app to cause a denial-of-service (DoS) condition by performing unauthorized actions. Apple has resolved the issue by implementing improved validation checks to prevent such unauthorized behavior. The fix is included in iOS 26.5, iPadOS 26.5, macOS Sequoia 15.7.7, macOS Tahoe 26.5, tvOS 26.5, visionOS 26.5, and watchOS 26.5. The CVSS v3.1 base score is 7.5, indicating a high severity, with network attack vector, low attack complexity, no privileges or user interaction required, and impact limited to confidentiality.

CWE-284Improper Access Control (opens in a new tab)
Pillar weaknessCWE Top 25 (2025): #19OWASP Top 10 A01:2025: Broken Access Control (opens in a new tab)
The product does not restrict or incorrectly restricts access to a resource from an unauthorized actor.
MITRE discourages mapping vulnerabilities to this broad entry; the root cause is usually a more specific weakness.
Architecture and Design · Operation
Very carefully manage the setting, management, and handling of privileges. Explicitly manage trust zones in the software.
Architecture and Design · Separation of Privilege
Compartmentalize the system to have "safe" areas where trust boundaries can be unambiguously drawn. Do not allow sensitive data to go outside of the trust boundary and always be careful when interfacing with a compartment outside of the safe area.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Docker Security (opens in a new tab)
Third Party Javascript Management (opens in a new tab)
Virtual Patching (opens in a new tab)
Authorization (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V1.4.4 (opens in a new tab)
V1.4.5 (opens in a new tab)
V1.10.1 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Embedding Scripts within Scripts (opens in a new tab)
Modification of Windows Service Configuration (opens in a new tab)
Malicious Root Certificate (opens in a new tab)
Intent Spoof (opens in a new tab)
WebView Exposure (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 19 May 2026, 10:58 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-284

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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