iPad iPad (4th generation) End of Life Date
iPad iPad (4th generation) end-of-life date, support status, and CVE risk. Data from endoflife.date and official vendor documentation.
iPad 4 was released on November 2, 2012 and support ended on July 22, 2019 — a supported lifespan of 6 years and 9 months, shorter than the 9 years median for iPad releases. It has been without security patches for 7 years and 1 month. 24 newer iPad releases have shipped since.
| Version | Latest | EOL Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| iPad (1st generation) | — | Sep 19, 2012 | EOL |
| iPad 2 | — | Jul 22, 2019 | EOL |
| iPad (3rd generation) | — | Jul 22, 2019 | EOL |
| → iPad (4th generation) | — | Jul 22, 2019 | EOL |
| iPad Mini (1st generation) | — | Jul 22, 2019 | EOL |
| iPad Air (1st generation) | — | Jan 23, 2023 | EOL |
| iPad Mini 2 | — | Jan 23, 2023 | EOL |
| iPad Air 2 | — | Sep 16, 2024 | EOL |
What does iPad iPad (4th generation) end of life mean?
When iPad iPad (4th generation) reaches end of life, the maintainers stop issuing security patches for this version. CVEs discovered after the EOL date are publicly disclosed on the National Vulnerability Database with no patch available. Exploit code frequently appears on GitHub within days of disclosure.
The CVE blind spot: Most vulnerability scanners check for known CVEs but do not flag the ongoing accumulation of unpatched vulnerabilities in EOL software versions. Running iPad iPad (4th generation) past its EOL date creates a permanently growing attack surface that standard security tooling will not surface.
Migrate to iPad iPad Air 11-inch (M4) or implement compensating controls — network segmentation, enhanced monitoring, restricted access — while migration is underway.