Apple has released critical updates to address a "use after free" vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2025-24085, that could allow a malicious application to elevate privileges. The company has confirmed reports of the flaw being actively exploited in older versions of iOS before 17.2.
The vulnerability was resolved through improved memory management, with fixes now available in visionOS 2.3, iOS 18.3, iPadOS 18.3, macOS Sequoia 15.3, watchOS 11.3, and tvOS 18.3.
The flaw affects multiple Apple platforms. Users are strongly advised to update their devices immediately.
Apple stated that it is "aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited" in older versions of iOS. The vulnerability allows attackers to exploit memory that has been improperly released, potentially leading to privilege escalation or system compromise.
To protect against the vulnerability, users should:
Update all Apple devices to the latest operating system versions.
Enable automatic updates to ensure devices stay patched against future threats.
The vulnerability was identified and patched by Apple’s internal Product Security team.
