What is the CVSS score of CVE-2025-43264?

CVE-2025-43264 has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 8.8 (High). CVSS vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H. EPSS exploitation probability: 0.0%.

Which versions of Apple are affected by CVE-2025-43264?

CVE-2025-43264 is a critical memory corruption vulnerability in macOS Sequoia's image processing that allows unauthenticated attackers to execute arbitrary code when users open malicious image files.. A patch is available.

How to fix or mitigate CVE-2025-43264?

Within 24 hours: Inventory all macOS Sequoia deployments and notify users to avoid opening untrusted image files from email or web sources. Within 7 days: Deploy macOS 15.6 (or later) to all affected systems using your MDM solution; prioritize users in high-risk roles. Within 30 days: Verify 100% patch compliance across macOS fleet and implement content filtering rules to block suspicious image attachments at mail gateways.

Apple CVE-2025-43264

EUVD-2025-209198 HIGH

Buffer Overflow (CWE-119)

2026-04-02 apple

GHSA-cr3p-mjqh-499p

Apple Buffer Overflow

8.8

CVSS 3.1 · NVD

Severity by source

NVD PRIMARY

8.8 HIGH

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

Primary rating from NVD · only source for this CVE.

CVSS VectorNVD

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

Attack Vector

Network

Attack Complexity

Low

Privileges Required

None

User Interaction

Required

Scope

Unchanged

Confidentiality

High

Integrity

High

Availability

High

Lifecycle Timeline

Analysis Updated

Apr 16, 2026 - 06:08 EUVD-patch-fix

executive_summary

Re-analysis Queued

Apr 16, 2026 - 05:29 backfill_euvd_patch

patch_released

Patch available

Apr 16, 2026 - 05:29 EUVD

15.6

EUVD ID Assigned

Apr 02, 2026 - 19:01 euvd

EUVD-2025-209198

Analysis Generated

Apr 02, 2026 - 19:01 vuln.today

CVE Published

Apr 02, 2026 - 18:14 nvd

HIGH 8.8

DescriptionCVE.org

The issue was addressed with improved memory handling. This issue is fixed in macOS Sequoia 15.6. Processing a maliciously crafted image may corrupt process memory.

AnalysisAI

Memory corruption in macOS Sequoia's image processing subsystem allows unauthenticated remote attackers to potentially execute arbitrary code when a user opens a specially crafted image file. Apple has patched this buffer overflow vulnerability in macOS 15.6. With a CVSS score of 8.8 and requiring only user interaction, this represents a significant attack surface for social engineering campaigns. EPSS data not available, but no public exploit or active exploitation confirmed at time of analysis. The SSVC framework rates this as total technical impact, reinforcing the criticality of applying the vendor patch.

Technical ContextAI

This vulnerability stems from improper memory handling (CWE-119: Improper Restriction on Operations within the Bounds of a Memory Buffer) in macOS Sequoia's image processing engine. Buffer overflow vulnerabilities occur when software writes data beyond allocated memory boundaries, allowing attackers to corrupt adjacent memory regions. In image processing contexts, these flaws typically reside in parsers for complex file formats (JPEG, PNG, TIFF, HEIC) where malformed metadata, dimensions, or compressed data streams can trigger out-of-bounds writes. The affected component is the macOS core operating system (CPE: cpe:2.3:a:apple:macos), specifically versions prior to 15.6. Apple's acknowledgment that the fix involved 'improved memory handling' suggests enhanced bounds checking, input validation, or memory allocation mechanisms were implemented to prevent the overflow condition.

RemediationAI

Vendor-released patch: macOS Sequoia 15.6. Users should immediately update to macOS 15.6 through System Settings > General > Software Update or via Apple's enterprise deployment tools. Apple's security update documentation at https://support.apple.com/en-us/124149 provides complete installation guidance and includes this fix among other security improvements in the 15.6 release. No workarounds are documented; patching is the only confirmed mitigation. Organizations unable to immediately deploy the update should implement defense-in-depth controls including restricting users from opening images from untrusted sources, enforcing email attachment filtering for uncommon image formats, and deploying endpoint detection solutions capable of identifying memory corruption exploitation attempts. For enterprise environments, test the macOS 15.6 update in staging before production deployment to ensure application compatibility, particularly for systems running custom image processing workflows or specialized graphics software.