CVE-2022-26724

Unauthenticated iCloud Photos activation

Published May 26, 2022 · Updated Aug 3, 2024

Authentication bypass in AuthKit in Apple tvOS before 15.5 allows local users to enable iCloud Photos without authentication. Apple identifies deficient state management but has not disclosed the AuthKit state transition or validation error that accepts the unauthenticated action. Local access to an affected Apple TV is required; the documented consequence is limited to enabling iCloud Photos without account reauthentication.

CVSS severity5.5
Medium
EPSS probability0.22%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Authentication bypass in AuthKit in Apple tvOS before 15.5 allows local users to enable iCloud Photos without authentication. Apple identifies deficient state management but has not disclosed the AuthKit state transition or validation error that accepts the unauthenticated action. Local access to an affected Apple TV is required; the documented consequence is limited to enabling iCloud Photos without account reauthentication.

The record

CVE
CVE-2022-26724
Published
May 26, 2022
Updated
Aug 3, 2024
Vendor
Apple
Product
tvOS
Classifications
CWE-287
Attack vector
local
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. May 26, 2022CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 3, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=unspecified <15.5

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

Apple · tvOSversion=unspecified <15.5

Published CVSS scores

5.5NIST National Vulnerability DatabaseCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N
2.1NIST National Vulnerability DatabaseAV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:P/A:N

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-287Improper Authentication

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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