{"id":"CVE-2026-86962","kind":"vulnerability","aliases":["CVE-2026-86962"],"related":[],"title":"Apple iOS and macOS: double free lets an app crash the system","description":"A double free issue was addressed with improved memory management. This issue is fixed in iOS 26.7 and iPadOS 26.7, iOS 27 and iPadOS 27, macOS Golden Gate 27, macOS Sequoia 15.8, macOS Tahoe 26.7, tvOS 27, visionOS 27, watchOS 27. An app may be able to cause unexpected system termination.","summary":"A double free memory bug in Apple's operating systems lets a malicious app cause unexpected system termination. The sources do not describe code execution or data access.","severity":"medium","cvss":5.5,"epss":null,"exploited":false,"exploited_at":null,"products":[],"ecosystems":[],"tags":["apple-devices","infrastructure","ios","ipados","macos","tvos","visionos","watchos"],"not_affected_if":["fixed-version"],"how_to_check":"- Check the device version under Settings > General > About (or `sw_vers -productVersion` on macOS) and compare it with the fixed releases below.","fix":"- Update iOS and iPadOS to `26.7` or `27`.\n- Update macOS Tahoe to `26.7`, macOS Sequoia to `15.8`, and macOS Golden Gate to `27`.\n- Update tvOS, visionOS and watchOS to `27`.","status":"open","published_at":"2026-10-20T01:17:28+00:00","first_seen_at":"2026-10-23T21:57:19+00:00","triaged_at":"2026-10-25T04:12:35+00:00","updated_at":"2026-10-25T04:12:35+00:00","category":"infrastructure","confidence":0.6,"triage":{"at":"2026-10-25T04:12:35Z","model":"claude-haiku-5-5","output":{"fix":"- Update iOS and iPadOS to `26.7` or `27`.\n- Update macOS Tahoe to `26.7`, macOS Sequoia to `15.8`, and macOS Golden Gate to `27`.\n- Update tvOS, visionOS and watchOS to `27`.","reach":"local","title":"Apple iOS and macOS: double free lets an app crash the system","impact":"low","summary":"A double free memory bug in Apple's operating systems lets a malicious app cause unexpected system termination. The sources do not describe code execution or data access.","category":"infrastructure","nicknames":[],"who_cares":["ios","ipados","macos","tvos","visionos","watchos","apple-devices"],"confidence":0.6,"needs_auth":"no","worst_case":"A malicious app crashes the system, forcing an unexpected restart","analyst_note":"Check Apple's security release notes for the affected component and whether the crash is only a denial of service.","how_to_check":"- Check the device version under Settings > General > About (or `sw_vers -productVersion` on macOS) and compare it with the fixed releases below.","needs_analyst":true,"not_affected_if":["fixed-version"],"who_is_affected":"Any Apple device running the affected releases is in scope, since the flaw sits in the operating system's memory handling. The sources say an app triggers the crash, so any installed app counts as a possible trigger. Devices already on the fixed versions are not affected.","user_interaction":"unknown","needs_special_setup":"unknown","severity_if_unknown":"medium"},"cost_usd":0.000601,"input_tokens":3328,"output_tokens":536,"severity_before":"medium"},"analyst_status":null,"analyst_note":null,"search":"'-2026':14A,17A '-86962':15A,18A '15.8':88C '26.7':73C,76C,91C '27':78C,81C,85C,93C,95C,97C 'abl':102C 'access':56B 'address':62C 'app':9A,42B,99C 'appl':1A,20B,35B 'apple-devic':19B 'bug':33B 'caus':43B,104C 'code':52B 'crash':10A 'cve':13A,16A 'data':55B 'describ':51B 'devic':21B 'doubl':5A,30B,58C 'execut':53B 'fix':70C 'free':6A,31B,59C 'gate':84C 'golden':83C 'improv':64C 'infrastructur':22B 'io':2A,23B,72C,77C 'ipado':24B,75C,80C 'issu':60C,68C 'let':7A,39B 'maco':4A,25B,82C,86C,89C 'malici':41B 'manag':66C 'may':100C 'memori':32B,65C 'oper':37B 'sequoia':87C 'sourc':48B 'system':12A,38B,45B,106C 'taho':90C 'termin':46B,107C 'tvos':26B,92C 'unexpect':44B,105C 'visiono':27B,94C 'watcho':28B,96C","nicknames":[],"mitigations":[],"who_affected":"Any Apple device running the affected releases is in scope, since the flaw sits in the operating system's memory handling. The sources say an app triggers the crash, so any installed app counts as a possible trigger. Devices already on the fixed versions are not affected.","tier":"C","verified":{},"analyst_revisit_at":null,"first_public_at":"2026-10-20T01:17:28+00:00","kev":null,"cvss_vector":"CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H","cvss_by":"134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0","poc_count":0,"sources":[{"source":"nvd","external_id":"CVE-2026-86962","url":"https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-86962","severity":null,"published_at":"2026-10-20T01:17:28+00:00","modified_at":"2026-10-20T15:03:59+00:00","first_seen_at":"2026-10-23T21:57:19+00:00","fetched_at":"2026-10-23T22:28:57+00:00","note":null}],"documents":[],"notice":"Free to read at a human pace. An API with keys and an MCP server are in preparation; early access: hello@infrastack.ai"}