CVE-2025-31214: A Critical Network Traffic Interception Vulnerability in iOS and iPadOS

Overview

In this blog post, we’ll be delving into a critical vulnerability, CVE-2025-31214, that was recently discovered and addressed in iOS 18.5 and iPadOS 18.5. This vulnerability, if exploited, allows an attacker in a privileged network position to potentially intercept network traffic, leading to significant system compromise or data leakage. Given the ubiquity of iOS and iPadOS devices, this vulnerability poses a significant risk to a vast number of users globally. Therefore, understanding the nature of this vulnerability, its potential impact, and the necessary mitigation steps is of vital importance.

Vulnerability Summary

CVE ID: CVE-2025-31214
Severity: Critical (CVSS score of 8.1 out of 10)
Attack Vector: Network
Privileges Required: High
User Interaction: None
Impact: Successful exploitation of this vulnerability could lead to system compromise and potential data leakage.

Affected Products

Product | Affected Versions

iOS | Up to and including 18.4
iPadOS | Up to and including 18.4

How the Exploit Works

This vulnerability stems from a deficiency in the state management of iOS and iPadOS. An attacker with high network privileges can exploit this weakness to intercept network traffic. This interception potentially allows access to sensitive data transmitted over the network or even control over the system itself, leading to a total system compromise.

Conceptual Example Code

In a conceptual sense, the attacker could be positioned as a man-in-the-middle (MITM) and intercept network traffic. Here’s a pseudocode example:

def intercept_traffic(network_traffic):
for packet in network_traffic:
if packet.destination == 'targeted_device':
print('Intercepted packet: ', packet)
manipulate(packet)  # The attacker could manipulate the packet here

This pseudocode example implies how an attacker might intercept and potentially manipulate network traffic, leading to data leakage or system compromise.

Impact

The impact of this vulnerability is severe, given the potential for system compromise and data leakage. Confidential information could be leaked, leading to identity theft, financial loss, or other significant damages.

Mitigation Guidance

We strongly recommend all users to immediately update their iOS or iPadOS to version 18.5 or later, where this vulnerability has been fixed. As a temporary mitigation, users can use a Web Application Firewall (WAF) or an Intrusion Detection System (IDS). However, these measures can only detect and potentially block the exploit; they cannot completely eliminate the vulnerability. Therefore, updating the software is the most effective solution.