AirDrop Malformed Requests Crash Sharingd on macOS 15/iOS 18; Quick Share Bypasses Samsung Handshake and Triggers Windows Use-After-Free
Six flaws across AirDrop and Quick Share permit nearby crashes and session bypasses without user interaction. Evidence from targeted builds shows shared framework impact beyond file transfer. Coordinated fixes are partial, leaving ecosystem Continuity features exposed until full rollout.
The flaws target discovery-to-session paths above the radio layer. AirDrop bugs hit shared Foundation frameworks, including an XML plist stack overflow reachable from any untrusted file. One crash disables AirPlay, Handoff, and NameDrop simultaneously on macOS 15.7.4 through 26.3 and iOS 18.x builds. Quick Share issues allow unencrypted control messages and premature session acceptance, tested on Galaxy S23 Ultra.
No public exploitation exists yet, but the Windows memory bug occurs when connections collide before Control Flow Guard enforcement, matching patterns seen in prior Google file-transfer CVEs. The five-billion-device footprint means even targeted DoS affects personal Continuity workflows without network access.
Apple issued one CVE and began patching; Google rewarded the Windows fix. Remaining AirDrop and Samsung issues remain in coordinated disclosure. Separate vendor Quick Share forks require independent audits because session logic diverges from Google's reference implementation.
Apple: Remaining two AirDrop flaws receive public CVE and OTA patch reaching 70 percent of active devices within 60 days.
Sources (2)
- [1]The Hacker News Report(https://thehackernews.com/2026/06/airdrop-and-quick-share-flaws-let.html)
- [2]CISPA Helmholtz Security Paper(https://cispa.de/en/research/publications/airdrop-quickshare-2026)