Comment by xvector
10 hours ago
Why can't Apple just sandbox the damn thing? Run the renderer in a VM, call it a day.
Or just spend a few billion tokens rewriting the whole chain in a memory safe language. This nonsense is inexcusable in 2026
10 hours ago
Why can't Apple just sandbox the damn thing? Run the renderer in a VM, call it a day.
Or just spend a few billion tokens rewriting the whole chain in a memory safe language. This nonsense is inexcusable in 2026
I sincerely believe you need much more than one billion tokens to rewrite the entire PDF dependency stack in a memory safe language. I think you underestimate how many features PDF has.
I wish that Apple today was a little more like the Apple that ruthlessly murdered the floppy disc and Flash.
Seriously though, I wonder why nobody really attempted to dethrone PDF yet. How hard can it be (famous last words) to design a document format that allows what people generally expect from a PDF, but without the multimedia and interactive parts that are dangerous?
Firefox has been working on this and are making good headway over the last few years.
It's sandboxed, not in a VM but using the *OS sandbox/seatbelt. Running all renderers in a separate VM on a consumer phone sounds like a terrible time when you need to stay competitive regarding performance, responsiveness, etc.
it offers just enough cover and deniability. Q.e.d this sub thread.
it's a feature. expect next exploit to also be pdf or image related.
The sandbox is just another layer
A bulletproof vest is just another layer.