CVE-2026-28986

Race Condition Leading to Unexpected System Termination on Apple OS

Published May 11, 2026 CVSS 3.1 · 7.5 High EPSS < 1% KEV · Not listed

Description

A race condition was addressed with additional validation. This issue is fixed in iOS 18.7.9 and iPadOS 18.7.9, iOS 26.5 and iPadOS 26.5, macOS Sequoia 15.7.7, macOS Sonoma 14.8.7, macOS Tahoe 26.5, tvOS 26.5, watchOS 26.5. An app may be able to cause unexpected system termination.

Analysis

Technical impact

A race condition in Apple operating systems allows an application to induce an unexpected system termination, causing a denial of service. The weakness arises from insufficient validation implemented during concurrent operations, which is categorized under race condition weaknesses (CWE‑362).

Affected Systems

Affected Apple products include iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, and watchOS. Specific vulnerable releases are iOS 18.7.9 and 26.5, iPadOS 18.7.9 and 26.5, macOS Sequoia 15.7.7, macOS Sonoma 14.8.7, macOS Tahoe 26.5, tvOS 26.5, and watchOS 26.5.

Risk and Exploitability

The CVSS score of 7.5 indicates high severity, while the EPSS score of <1% points to a very low likelihood of exploitation. The vulnerability is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog. The description states that an application may trigger the race condition, implying that the attack requires a local or installed app; remote exploitation is not indicated by the current data.

Affected Products

Default status is the baseline for the product, each version can override it (e.g. patched versions marked unaffected).

Vendor Product Default status Versions

Apple

iOS and iPadOS

affected

Version	Status	Constraints
`0`	affected	< 18.7.9
`0`	affected	< 26.5

Apple

macOS

affected

Version	Status	Constraints
`0`	affected	< 14.8.7
`0`	affected	< 15.7.7
`0`	affected	< 26.5

Apple

tvOS

affected

Version	Status	Constraints
`0`	affected	< 26.5

Apple

watchOS

affected

Version	Status	Constraints
`0`	affected	< 26.5

Configuration 1 [-]

OR	cpe:2.3:o:apple:ipados::::::::
	cpe:2.3:o:apple:ipados::::::::
	cpe:2.3:o:apple:iphone_os::::::::
	cpe:2.3:o:apple:iphone_os::::::::
	cpe:2.3:o:apple:macos::::::::
	cpe:2.3:o:apple:macos::::::::
	cpe:2.3:o:apple:macos::::::::
	cpe:2.3:o:apple:tvos::::::::
	cpe:2.3:o:apple:watchos::::::::

No data.

Vendor Product Versions

Apple

Ios And Ipados

Version	Status	Scheme	Platform
`[0,18.7.9)`	affected	semver	—
`[0,26.5)`	affected	semver	—

Apple

Macos

Version	Status	Scheme	Platform
`[0,14.8.7)`	affected	semver	—
`[0,15.7.7)`	affected	semver	—
`[0,26.5)`	affected	semver	—

Apple

Tvos

Version	Status	Scheme	Platform
`[0,26.5)`	affected	semver	—

Apple

Watchos

Version	Status	Scheme	Platform
`[0,26.5)`	affected	semver	—

Remediation

No solution or workaround provided in the CVE record.

OpenCVE Recommended Actions

Install the latest OS update that includes the race condition fix: iOS 18.7.9/26.5, iPadOS 18.7.9/26.5, macOS Sequoia 15.7.7, macOS Sonoma 14.8.7, macOS Tahoe 26.5, tvOS 26.5, or watchOS 26.5.
Ensure all third‑party applications are updated to the latest versions that address concurrency issues, or remove applications that have known race‑condition vulnerabilities.
Use MDM or automated update deployment to enforce patching across all managed Apple devices and block installation of unsigned or untrusted apps.

Generated by OpenCVE AI on May 12, 2026 at 19:36 UTC.

Tracking

Advisories

No advisories available

Metrics

No CVSS v4.0

Attack Vector Network

Attack Complexity Low

Privileges Required None

Scope Unchanged

Confidentiality Impact None

Integrity Impact None

Availability Impact High

User Interaction None

No CVSS v3.0

No CVSS v2

This CVE is not in the KEV list.

Exploit prediction score: < 1% (0.413% probability within 30 days)

Exploitation none

Automatable yes

Technical Impact partial

References

Link	Providers
https://support.apple.com/en-us/127110
https://support.apple.com/en-us/127111
https://support.apple.com/en-us/127115
https://support.apple.com/en-us/127116
https://support.apple.com/en-us/127117
https://support.apple.com/en-us/127118
https://support.apple.com/en-us/127119

History

May 12, 2026 8:00 PM Title updated View changes

Type	Values Removed	Values Added
Title		Race Condition Leading to Unexpected System Termination on Apple OS

May 12, 2026 5:30 PM Title updated. First appearance in the feed. Weaknesses updated. Affected versions updated. Affected vendors updated View changes

Type	Values Removed	Values Added
Title	Race Condition Allowing Application to Trigger System Termination
First Time appeared		Apple ipados Apple iphone Os
Weaknesses	CWE-368
CPEs		cpe:2.3:o:apple:ipados:::::::: cpe:2.3:o:apple:iphone_os:::::::: cpe:2.3:o:apple:macos:::::::: cpe:2.3:o:apple:tvos:::::::: cpe:2.3:o:apple:watchos::::::::
Vendors & Products		Apple ipados Apple iphone Os

May 12, 2026 2:15 PM Weaknesses updated. Scoring metrics updated View changes

Type	Values Removed	Values Added
Weaknesses		CWE-362
Metrics		cvssV3_1 `{'score': 7.5, 'vector': 'CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H'}` ssvc `{'options': {'Automatable': 'yes', 'Exploitation': 'none', 'Technical Impact': 'partial'}, 'version': '2.0.3'}`

May 11, 2026 11:30 PM Title updated. Weaknesses updated View changes

Type	Values Removed	Values Added
Title		Race Condition Allowing Application to Trigger System Termination
Weaknesses		CWE-368

May 11, 2026 10:30 PM First appearance in the feed. Affected vendors updated View changes

Type	Values Removed	Values Added
First Time appeared		Apple Apple ios And Ipados Apple macos Apple tvos Apple watchos
Vendors & Products		Apple Apple ios And Ipados Apple macos Apple tvos Apple watchos

May 11, 2026 8:45 PM Description updated. Added references View changes

Type	Values Removed	Values Added
Description		A race condition was addressed with additional validation. This issue is fixed in iOS 18.7.9 and iPadOS 18.7.9, iOS 26.5 and iPadOS 26.5, macOS Sequoia 15.7.7, macOS Sonoma 14.8.7, macOS Tahoe 26.5, tvOS 26.5, watchOS 26.5. An app may be able to cause unexpected system termination.
References		https://support.apple.com/en-us/127110 https://support.apple.com/en-us/127111 https://support.apple.com/en-us/127115 https://support.apple.com/en-us/127116 https://support.apple.com/en-us/127117 https://support.apple.com/en-us/127118 https://support.apple.com/en-us/127119