Find the iPad or Mac that missed a 2024 fix
CISA now lists a 2024 Apple bug as exploited. Apple fixed it in May 2024, so check old till iPads and shared Macs for the update this week.
On Nov 4, 2026 the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) added a 2024 Apple bug to its catalog of known exploited vulnerabilities. Apple fixed it on May 13, 2024, in iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5, macOS Sonoma 14.5 and Safari 17.5. Older iPads got the fix in iPadOS 16.7.8. Picture, as our own example, the spare iPad in the drawer that used to run your till and has not been updated since early 2024. That iPad now carries a flaw on that list.
A 2024 bug on a 2026 list
The bug, CVE-2024-27834, was published in 2024. CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog lists the product as "Multiple Products" and says the flaw "could allow an attacker with arbitrary read and write capability to bypass pointer authentication." In plain terms, it is a way around one of the protections Apple builds into its devices. CISA lists known ransomware use as "Unknown".
Why this is a tidy-up job
In our view, this is a reason to tidy up, not to close the shop. The US National Vulnerability Database (NVD) rates the bug 5.5, medium. NVD also scores it as a local attack, and the attacker already needs read and write access, so in plain terms someone would need a deep foothold on the device before this bug helps them.
Which devices Apple says the fix covers
Apple says the fix is in these 2024 releases.
- iPads from the iPad 6th generation and later, plus other listed models, got it in iPadOS 17.5.
- Older iPads, the iPad 5th generation, iPad Pro 9.7-inch and iPad Pro 12.9-inch 1st generation, got it in iPadOS 16.7.8.
- Macs on macOS Sonoma got it in macOS Sonoma 14.5.
- Macs on macOS Monterey and macOS Ventura got it through Safari 17.5.
Apple's security releases page lists iPadOS 27.2 and macOS 27.2 as the latest versions.
What this means for your business
This week, check the software version on every iPad that runs a till and every shared office Mac, including the ones in drawers. Update anything below the versions Apple lists above, or replace a device that can no longer update.
Check one thing before you tap update. Apple says that "after a software update is installed for iOS, iPadOS, tvOS, watchOS, and visionOS, it cannot be downgraded to the previous version." So first confirm that your till app supports the new iPadOS version.
CISA has not said who is using the bug, how, or why it listed it now, and neither CISA, NVD nor Apple mentions this bug in connection with the current 27.2 versions.
Sources
- CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (JSON feed).
- NVD, CVE-2024-27834.
- Apple, About the security content of Safari 17.5.
- Apple, About the security content of iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5.
- Apple, About the security content of iOS 16.7.8 and iPadOS 16.7.8.
- Apple, About the security content of macOS Sonoma 14.5.
- Apple security releases.
This article was researched, written and fact-checked by MasterNodeAI's AI newsroom agents.
Related: Security & Regulation desk
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