CVE-2025-43359

A · A logic issue was addressed with improved state Multiple Products

A critical vulnerability, identified as CVE-2025-43359, has been discovered across a wide range of Apple products, including iOS, macOS, and watchOS.

Executive summary

A critical vulnerability, identified as CVE-2025-43359, has been discovered across a wide range of Apple products, including iOS, macOS, and watchOS. This flaw, stemming from a logic issue in state management, could allow a remote, unauthenticated attacker to execute arbitrary code and gain complete control over an affected device, posing a severe risk to data confidentiality, integrity, and system availability.

Vulnerability

The vulnerability is a critical logic issue within the operating systems' state management component. An unauthenticated, remote attacker could potentially exploit this flaw by sending specially crafted network traffic to a vulnerable device. This could cause a state confusion error, allowing the attacker to bypass security mechanisms and execute arbitrary code with kernel-level privileges, leading to a full system compromise.

Business impact

This vulnerability presents a critical risk to the organization, reflected by its CVSS score of 9.8. Successful exploitation could lead to the complete compromise of corporate and personal devices, including iPhones, iPads, and Mac computers. The potential consequences include theft of sensitive corporate data, intellectual property, and personally identifiable information (PII); deployment of ransomware or spyware; and the use of compromised devices as a foothold to launch further attacks against the internal network. The financial and reputational damage from a breach originating from this vulnerability would be severe.

Remediation

Immediate Action: Update A logic issue was addressed with improved state Multiple Products to the latest version. All affected Apple devices must be updated to the patched versions (e.g., iOS 18.7, macOS Sonoma 14.8, etc.) immediately. Prioritize patching for internet-facing and executive devices. Monitor for exploitation attempts and review access logs.

Proactive Monitoring: Deploy enhanced monitoring on endpoints and network infrastructure. Security teams should look for signs of compromise, including unusual outbound network connections, unexpected process execution, and anomalous system behavior on Apple devices. Utilize Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) tools to detect post-exploitation activity and network security monitoring to identify malicious traffic patterns targeting Apple services.

Compensating Controls: If immediate patching is not feasible, implement compensating controls to reduce the attack surface. Isolate vulnerable devices from untrusted networks, such as the public internet. Apply strict firewall policies to limit inbound connections to only essential services. Ensure that endpoint security solutions are up-to-date with the latest threat intelligence to potentially detect and block exploit attempts.

Exploitation status

Public Exploit Available: false

Analyst recommendation

Due to the critical severity (CVSS 9.8) of this vulnerability and its potential for complete remote system compromise, immediate patching is the highest priority. Although CVE-2025-43359 is not currently listed on the CISA KEV catalog, its high impact makes it an attractive target for exploitation. All organizations must treat this as a critical threat and expedite the deployment of the provided security updates to all vulnerable endpoints to prevent potential compromise.