CVE-2014-4405
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 · uneditedIOHIDFamily in Apple iOS before 8 and Apple TV before 7 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code in a privileged context or cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference) via an application that provides crafted key-mapping properties.
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 · moderate confidenceIOHIDFamily (Human Interface Device framework) in Apple iOS before 8 and Apple TV before 7 contains a vulnerability where a malicious application providing crafted key-mapping properties can trigger either arbitrary code execution in a privileged (kernel) context or cause a NULL pointer dereference leading to denial of service.
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= 7.1.1<= 6.2= 6.0= 6.0.1= 6.0.2= 6.1= 6.1.1= 6.1.2<= 10.10.2CVSS 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
- M
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
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 iPhone or iPadGo to Settings > General > About and note the Version numberAffected if Version shows 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 8 and later are not affected)
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Check Apple TV versionGo to Settings > General > About > Version on Apple TVAffected if Version shows 6.0, 6.0.1, 6.0.2, 6.1, 6.1.1, 6.1.2, or 6.2 (Apple TV 7 and later are not affected)
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Check Mac OS X versionClick Apple menu > About This Mac and note the version numberAffected if Version shows 10.10.2 or any earlier 10.x version (10.10.3 and later are not affected)
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Confirm IOHIDFamily kernel component is presentOn Mac: run 'kextstat | grep IOHIDFamily' in Terminal. On iOS/Apple TV: this kernel extension is always loaded as part of the systemAffected if IOHIDFamily kext is loaded (which is default) on a vulnerable OS version indicates exposure
Your device is affected if it runs iOS 7.0-7.1.2, Apple TV 6.0-6.2, or Mac OS X 10.10.2 or earlier, because the vulnerable IOHIDFamily component is built into these versions.
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.
dbcve · scopedUpgrade to iOS 8 or later and Apple TV 7 or later to obtain the patched IOHIDFamily component; prior versions remain vulnerable.
iOS 8+, tvOS 7+, macOS 10.10.3+
- For iOS devices: Navigate to Settings > General > Software Update and upgrade to iOS 8 or later
- For tvOS devices: Navigate to Settings > General > About > Version and upgrade to tvOS 7 or later
- For Mac OS X: Open the App Store, check for updates, and install macOS 10.10.3 or later
- Alternatively, ensure Automatic Updates are enabled via System Preferences > App Store > Automatic Updates
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2014-4405 — 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-2014-4405 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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A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data