CVE-2025-24230: Apple iPadOS Buffer Overflow Vulnerability

CVE-2025-24230 Overview

CVE-2025-24230 is an out-of-bounds read vulnerability [CWE-125] affecting Apple's audio processing stack across multiple operating systems. Playing a maliciously crafted audio file can trigger memory access beyond allocated boundaries, leading to unexpected application termination. Apple addressed the issue with improved input validation in iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4, iPadOS 17.7.6, macOS Sequoia 15.4, macOS Sonoma 14.7.5, macOS Ventura 13.7.5, tvOS 18.4, visionOS 2.4, and watchOS 11.4.

The flaw spans Apple's mobile, desktop, wearable, TV, and mixed-reality platforms, indicating a shared media-parsing code path. While the documented impact is application termination, out-of-bounds reads can also leak adjacent memory contents in certain conditions.

Critical Impact
A remote attacker can deliver a malicious audio file that triggers an out-of-bounds read in Apple's audio parser, causing process crashes and potential information exposure across iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, visionOS, and watchOS.

Affected Products

Apple iOS and iPadOS (prior to 18.4; iPadOS 17.7.6 for legacy devices)
Apple macOS Sequoia (prior to 15.4), macOS Sonoma (prior to 14.7.5), macOS Ventura (prior to 13.7.5)
Apple tvOS (prior to 18.4), visionOS (prior to 2.4), watchOS (prior to 11.4)

Discovery Timeline

2025-03-31 - CVE-2025-24230 published to the National Vulnerability Database (NVD)
2026-04-02 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-24230

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability is an out-of-bounds read in Apple's audio file handling component. When a crafted audio file is parsed, the affected code reads data past the boundaries of an allocated buffer. Apple's advisory states that improved input validation resolves the issue, indicating that field-length or offset checks were missing or insufficient before the patched releases.

The defect is present across iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, visionOS, and watchOS, which strongly suggests the flaw resides in a shared multimedia framework used by all Apple platforms. Audio decoding paths are commonly reachable from sandboxed contexts such as Safari, Messages, Mail, and third-party applications that pass files to system decoders.

Root Cause

The root cause is improper input validation [CWE-125] in the audio parser. Specifically, the parser dereferences offsets or lengths from attacker-controlled file fields without verifying that the resulting access remains inside the allocated buffer. When a malformed structure provides an oversized length or out-of-range offset, the decoder reads adjacent memory.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is network-reachable and requires no privileges or user authentication beyond opening or previewing the audio file. An attacker hosts or sends a crafted audio file through web pages, email attachments, messaging apps, or AirDrop. When the file is rendered by a vulnerable Apple decoder, the application terminates unexpectedly. No verified public proof-of-concept or exploit code is available, and the CVE is not listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog.

No verified exploit code has been published. Technical details are referenced in Apple's security advisories and corresponding Full Disclosure mailing list posts.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-24230

Indicators of Compromise

Repeated, unexpected terminations of media-handling processes such as coreaudiod, AudioComponentRegistrar, or app processes that invoke AVFoundation and AudioToolbox after opening audio content
macOS crash reports under ~/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/ referencing audio framework stack frames with EXC_BAD_ACCESS or KERN_INVALID_ADDRESS exceptions
Inbound audio files (e.g., .mp3, .m4a, .caf, .aac) delivered via email, messaging, or web download immediately preceding application crashes

Detection Strategies

Monitor endpoint telemetry for crashes in audio decoder processes correlated with recent file ingestion from untrusted sources
Inspect email and web gateways for audio attachments with malformed headers, abnormal chunk sizes, or invalid container metadata
Track Apple OS build versions across the fleet and flag devices still running pre-patch builds (iOS/iPadOS < 18.4, macOS Sequoia < 15.4, etc.)

Monitoring Recommendations

Centralize macOS and iOS crash reports into your SIEM and alert on clusters of audio-stack faults across multiple users
Apply MDM compliance policies that enforce minimum OS versions containing the fix
Correlate file-delivery events (mail, messaging, browser downloads) with subsequent process termination events on the same host

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-24230

Immediate Actions Required

Update all Apple devices to the patched releases: iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4, iPadOS 17.7.6, macOS Sequoia 15.4, macOS Sonoma 14.7.5, macOS Ventura 13.7.5, tvOS 18.4, visionOS 2.4, and watchOS 11.4
Use MDM solutions (Jamf, Intune, Kandji) to enforce update deadlines and verify compliance across managed fleets
Prioritize patching for high-risk users such as executives, journalists, and developers who regularly receive external media files

Patch Information

Apple released fixes that introduce improved input validation in the affected audio parser. See the official advisories: Apple Support 122371, 122372, 122373, 122374, 122375, 122377, and 122378.

Workarounds

Block or quarantine audio attachments from unknown senders at email and messaging gateways until devices are patched
Disable automatic media preview in Messages and Mail where feasible to prevent automatic decoding of inbound audio
Restrict AirDrop receiving to Contacts Only on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS endpoints

bash

# Verify macOS build version meets the patched baseline
sw_vers -productVersion

# Example MDM compliance check (Jamf smart group criteria)
# Operating System Version | greater than or equal | 15.4

# Restrict AirDrop to Contacts Only via configuration profile
defaults write com.apple.sharingd DiscoverableMode -string "Contacts Only"