This issue was addressed with improved authentication. This issue is fixed in iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4. An attacker with a USB-C connection to an unlocked device may be able to programmatically access photos.
The product does not restrict or incorrectly restricts access to a resource from an unauthorized actor.
Access control involves the use of several protection mechanisms such as:
When any mechanism is not applied or otherwise fails, attackers can compromise the security of the product by gaining privileges, reading sensitive information, executing commands, evading detection, etc. There are two distinct behaviors that can introduce access control weaknesses: