Improper locking copy-on-write memory corruption in Apple XNU kernel
CVE-2025-43510 is an Apple kernel/XNU memory corruption vulnerability caused by improper locking during shared-memory copy-on-write handling. Apple describes the issue as a memory corruption bug fixed with improved lock state checking, where a malicious application may cause unexpected changes in memory shared between processes. Supporting reporting further characterizes it as a copy-on-write bug in the kernel that was used in the DarkSword exploit chain to escape from the GPU process and pivot execution into mediaplaybackd, where attackers reportedly built arbitrary function-call primitives. The issue affects multiple Apple platforms, including iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, visionOS, and watchOS, and was fixed in iOS/iPadOS 18.7.2 and 26.1, macOS Sequoia 15.7.2, macOS Sonoma 14.8.2, macOS Tahoe 26.1, tvOS 26.1, visionOS 26.1, and watchOS 26.1.
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Impact, mitigation & remediation
What it means. What to do now. Patch path, mitigations, and the assume-compromise checklist.
Impact
What an attacker gets, and what they’ve been doing with it.
Mitigation
If you can’t patch tonight, do this now.
Remediation
Patch, then assume compromise.
Exploits
No public exploits tracked yet. Mallory keeps watching.
No public exploit code observed for this vulnerability.
Affected products & vendors
Products and vendors Mallory has correlated with this vulnerability. Open in Mallory to drill down to specific CPE configurations and version ranges.
Vendor-confirmed product mapping. Mallory continuously reconciles this list against your asset inventory.
Recent activity
32 sources tracked across advisories, community write-ups, and news. New activity surfaces here as Mallory finds it.
One of six CVEs in the DarkSword iOS exploit chain affecting older iOS 18 devices and tracked by CISA as actively exploited.
One of six vulnerabilities leveraged by the DarkSword exploit kit targeting iPhones and iPads running iOS 18.x; significant because DarkSword is described as actively exploited and broadly deployed.
One of six iOS vulnerabilities used by the DarkSword exploit kit to target iPhones running iOS 18.4 through 18.7; Apple shipped fixes in security updates and later expanded iOS 18.7.7 availability to protect more devices.
An Apple kernel copy-on-write vulnerability used to build function call primitives inside the privileged mediaplaybackd process during the DarkSword exploit chain.
The version that knows your environment.
Query your assets running an affected version, and investigate the blast radius.
Every observed campaign linking this CVE to a named adversary.
Malware families riding this exploit, with evidence and IOCs.
YARA, Sigma, Snort, and vendor rules, auto-deployed to your SIEM.
Cross-references every affected SKU, including bundled OEM variants.
Community discussion across Reddit, Mastodon, and other social sources.