CVE-2021-1739 Path traversal in iOS and iPadOS
A local attacker can exploit a path validation flaw to modify protected parts of the file system on Apple devices.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Any signed-in user
- Attackable
- Local or same network only
- Victim action needed
- Not needed
- Fix
- None listed
What is CVE-2021-1739?
CVE-2021-1739 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in Apple Ipados, published on 8 Sep 2021. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Official description
A parsing issue in the handling of directory paths was addressed with improved path validation. This issue is fixed in Security Update 2021-002 Catalina, Security Update 2021-003 Mojave, iOS 14.5 and iPadOS 14.5, watchOS 7.4, tvOS 14.5, macOS Big Sur 11.3. A local user may be able to modify protected parts of the file system.
Weakness: CWE-22
Which versions are affected by CVE-2021-1739?
It affects 6 products.
Products include Apple Ipados, Apple Iphone Os, Apple Mac Os X, Apple Macos, Apple Tvos, Apple Watchos.
How do I fix CVE-2021-1739?
No fix has been published for CVE-2021-1739 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.
Upgrade, and resolve every user-supplied path against an allowed base folder before opening it. More about Path traversal.
Is CVE-2021-1739 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-1739 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Other vulnerabilities in Apple Ipados
- CVE-2025-43300 Apple iOS, iPadOS, and macOS Out-of-Bounds Write
- CVE-2025-24201 Apple Multiple Products WebKit Out-of-Bounds Write
- CVE-2025-24085 Apple Multiple Products Use-After-Free
- CVE-2025-31200 Apple Multiple Products Memory Corruption
- CVE-2025-31201 Apple Multiple Products Arbitrary Read and Write
Sources
Also known as GHSA-5x9g-fm6c-gp28.