CVE-2025-43222

Critical Use‑After‑Free Exploitation Causing App Crash in iPadOS and macOS

Published Jul 29, 2025 CVSS 3.1 · 9.8 Critical EPSS < 1% KEV · Not listed
Description
A use-after-free issue was addressed by removing the vulnerable code. This issue is fixed in iPadOS 17.7.9, macOS Sequoia 15.6, macOS Sonoma 14.7.7, macOS Ventura 13.7.7. An attacker may be able to cause unexpected app termination.

Analysis

AI-generated

Technical impact

The vulnerability is a use‑after‑free that can cause an application to terminate unexpectedly. An attacker exploiting this flaw can force the target process to crash, resulting in a denial of service that may impact user experience and system stability. This weakness is classified as CWE‑416, reflecting a vulnerable release or deletion of memory that continues to be referenced.

Affected Systems

Apple devices running iPadOS or macOS versions that have not applied the latest security update are affected. The patch was released for iPadOS 17.7.9, macOS Sequoia 15.6, macOS Sonoma 14.7.7, and macOS Ventura 13.7.7. All prior releases of these operating systems remain vulnerable.

Risk and Exploitability

The CVSS score of 9.8 indicates a critical risk, but the EPSS score of less than 1% suggests that exploitation in the wild is unlikely at present. The vulnerability is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog, which further reduces the perceived threat level. Based on the description, it is inferred that the attack vector would require an attacker to trigger the use‑after‑free through a malicious application or otherwise deliver code that takes advantage of the freed memory. No publicly available exploits have yet been reported.

Remediation

No solution or workaround provided in the CVE record.

OpenCVE Recommended Actions

  • Update iPadOS to version 17.7.9 or later, and upgrade macOS to Sequoia 15.6, Sonoma 14.7.7, or Ventura 13.7.7 or newer.
  • If an immediate update cannot be performed, restrict the installation or execution of third‑party applications that invoke the vulnerable code paths until the patch is applied.
  • Continuously monitor system logs for unexpected application crashes that could indicate exploitation attempts.

Generated by OpenCVE AI on April 28, 2026 at 00:58 UTC.

Tracking

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Advisories

Source ID Title
EUVD EUVD EUVD-2025-23097 A use-after-free issue was addressed by removing the vulnerable code. This issue is fixed in macOS Sequoia 15.6, iPadOS 17.7.9, macOS Ventura 13.7.7, macOS Sonoma 14.7.7. An attacker may be able to cause unexpected app termination.
History
Type Values Removed Values Added
Title Critical Use‑After‑Free Exploitation Causing App Crash in iPadOS and macOS
Type Values Removed Values Added
Description A use-after-free issue was addressed by removing the vulnerable code. This issue is fixed in macOS Sequoia 15.6, iPadOS 17.7.9, macOS Ventura 13.7.7, macOS Sonoma 14.7.7. An attacker may be able to cause unexpected app termination. A use-after-free issue was addressed by removing the vulnerable code. This issue is fixed in iPadOS 17.7.9, macOS Sequoia 15.6, macOS Sonoma 14.7.7, macOS Ventura 13.7.7. An attacker may be able to cause unexpected app termination.
Type Values Removed Values Added
CPEs cpe:2.3:o:apple:ipados:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:apple:macos:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
Type Values Removed Values Added
Weaknesses CWE-416
Metrics cvssV3_1

{'score': 9.8, 'vector': 'CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H'}

ssvc

{'options': {'Automatable': 'yes', 'Exploitation': 'none', 'Technical Impact': 'total'}, 'version': '2.0.3'}

Type Values Removed Values Added
First Time appeared Apple
Apple ipados
Apple macos
Apple macos Sequoia
Apple macos Sonoma
Apple macos Ventura
Vendors & Products Apple
Apple ipados
Apple macos
Apple macos Sequoia
Apple macos Sonoma
Apple macos Ventura
Type Values Removed Values Added
Description A use-after-free issue was addressed by removing the vulnerable code. This issue is fixed in iPadOS 17.7.9, macOS Sequoia 15.6, macOS Sonoma 14.7.7, macOS Ventura 13.7.7. An attacker may be able to cause unexpected app termination. A use-after-free issue was addressed by removing the vulnerable code. This issue is fixed in macOS Sequoia 15.6, iPadOS 17.7.9, macOS Ventura 13.7.7, macOS Sonoma 14.7.7. An attacker may be able to cause unexpected app termination.
Type Values Removed Values Added
Description A use-after-free issue was addressed by removing the vulnerable code. This issue is fixed in iPadOS 17.7.9, macOS Sequoia 15.6, macOS Sonoma 14.7.7, macOS Ventura 13.7.7. An attacker may be able to cause unexpected app termination.
References
Weaknesses

Sources

Status
PUBLISHED
Assigner
apple
Published
Updated
Apr 2, 2026, 6:11 PM
Reserved
Apr 16, 2025, 3:24 PM
Status
Modified
Published
Jul 30, 2025, 12:15 AM
Modified
Jun 17, 2026, 9:23 AM