CVE-2014-4366
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedMail in Apple iOS before 8 does not prevent sending a LOGIN command to a LOGINDISABLED IMAP server, which allows remote attackers to obtain sensitive cleartext information by sniffing the network.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceThe iOS Mail app before version 8 sends IMAP LOGIN credentials in cleartext even when connecting to servers that have disabled the LOGIN command (requiring encrypted authentication). This occurs because the app does not respect the LOGINDISABLED capability, causing it to transmit username and password in plaintext that network attackers can intercept via sniffing.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data<= 7.1.2= 7.0= 7.0.1= 7.0.2= 7.0.3= 7.0.4= 7.0.5= 7.0.6= 7.1= 7.1.1CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Partial
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:N/A:N
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check iOS version on deviceNavigate to Settings > General > About on the iOS device and record the Version numberAffected if Version displays as 7.0, 7.0.1, 7.0.2, 7.0.3, 7.0.4, 7.0.5, 7.0.6, 7.1, 7.1.1, or 7.1.2 (iOS 7.x up to 7.1.2)
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Confirm Mail app is used for IMAPVerify that the native iOS Mail app (not a third-party email client) is configured and active for the IMAP account in questionAffected if The built-in iOS Mail app is configured for IMAP access
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Inspect IMAP server capability for LOGINDISABLEDConnect to the IMAP server via telnet or IMAP client and issue the CAPABILITY command. Look for LOGINDISABLED in the server responseAffected if The IMAP server returns LOGINDISABLED in its capability list, indicating plain LOGIN authentication is disabled and encrypted authentication is required
Environment is affected if the iOS device runs version 7.0 through 7.1.2, uses the native Mail app, and connects to an IMAP server that advertises LOGINDISABLED capability, because the Mail app will transmit credentials in cleartext despite the server requiring encrypted authentication.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataUpdate iOS devices to version 8 or later, which properly respects the LOGINDISABLED IMAP server capability. Alternatively, ensure IMAP servers require TLS/SSL from the start of the connection before authentication to prevent plaintext credential transmission.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2014-4366 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2014-4366 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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