CVE-2025-46279
LOWCVSS Vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N
Lifecycle Timeline
2Description
A permissions issue was addressed with additional restrictions. This issue is fixed in iOS 18.7.3 and iPadOS 18.7.3, iOS 26.2 and iPadOS 26.2, macOS Tahoe 26.2, tvOS 26.2, visionOS 26.2, watchOS 26.2. An app may be able to identify what other apps a user has installed.
Analysis
Installed app enumeration via permissions bypass in Apple operating systems allows a locally authenticated app to discover what other applications a user has installed through insufficient access controls. Affects iOS 18.7.2 and earlier, iPadOS 18.7.2 and earlier, macOS Tahoe 26.1 and earlier, tvOS 26.1 and earlier, visionOS 26.1 and earlier, and watchOS 26.1 and earlier. The vulnerability has a low CVSS score (3.3) with extremely low exploitation probability (EPSS 0.02%) and no public exploit identified at time of analysis.
Technical Context
The vulnerability stems from improper access controls (CWE-200: Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor) in Apple's app permission system across multiple operating systems. Third-party applications running on iOS/iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, visionOS, and watchOS can enumerate installed applications through API calls or file system queries that should have been restricted. The issue involves inadequate sandboxing or capability enforcement that allows installed apps to query or access information about other apps' presence without explicit user authorization or system-level restrictions. This affects the foundational permission model that should isolate applications from accessing metadata about the broader app ecosystem.
Affected Products
The vulnerability affects multiple Apple operating system families across their most recent major versions: iOS and iPadOS versions prior to 18.7.3, macOS Tahoe prior to version 26.2, tvOS prior to version 26.2, visionOS prior to version 26.2, and watchOS prior to version 26.2. Additionally, iOS and iPadOS versions prior to 26.2 (newer major version) are affected. The CPE data confirms impact across cpe:2.3:o:apple:iphone_os, cpe:2.3:o:apple:ipados, cpe:2.3:o:apple:macos, cpe:2.3:o:apple:tvos, cpe:2.3:o:apple:visionos, and cpe:2.3:o:apple:watchos product families. Specific version boundaries are: iOS/iPadOS versions below 18.7.3 and below 26.2; macOS below 26.2; tvOS below 26.2; visionOS below 26.2; and watchOS below 26.2.
Remediation
Vendor-released patches are available: update to iOS 18.7.3 or iOS 26.2 and iPadOS 18.7.3 or iPadOS 26.2 for iPhone and iPad devices respectively; macOS Tahoe 26.2 for Mac computers; tvOS 26.2 for Apple TV; visionOS 26.2 for Vision Pro; and watchOS 26.2 for Apple Watch. Users should enable automatic security updates in Settings > General > Software Update > Automatic Updates if available on their device, or manually check for available updates through their device's Settings application. Detailed patch information and security advisories are available via Apple support documents at https://support.apple.com/en-us/125884, https://support.apple.com/en-us/125885, https://support.apple.com/en-us/125886, https://support.apple.com/en-us/125889, https://support.apple.com/en-us/125890, and https://support.apple.com/en-us/125891.
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External POC / Exploit Code
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