CVE-2014-4491
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 · uneditedThe extension APIs in the kernel in Apple iOS before 8.1.3, Apple OS X before 10.10.2, and Apple TV before 7.0.3 do not prevent the presence of addresses within an OSBundleMachOHeaders key in a response, which makes it easier for attackers to bypass the ASLR protection mechanism via a crafted app.
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 kernel extension APIs in Apple iOS before 8.1.3, OS X before 10.10.2, and Apple TV before 7.0.3 fail to prevent the presence of memory addresses within the OSBundleMachOHeaders key in a response. This allows a crafted malicious app to read memory addresses directly, effectively bypassing ASLR (Address Space Layout Randomization) protection that would otherwise randomize memory layouts.
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<= 8.1.2<= 10.10.1<= 7.0.1CVSS 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 iPhone or iPadGo to Settings > General > About > Version, or use Finder/iTunes to view the iOS version, or check via MDM/enterprise management tools if deployedAffected if Version is 8.1.2 or lower
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Check OS X version on MacRun 'sw_vers -productVersion' in Terminal, or go to Apple menu > About This MacAffected if Version is 10.10.1 or lower
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Check tvOS version on Apple TVGo to Settings > General > About > Version on the Apple TV deviceAffected if Version is 7.0.1 or lower
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Confirm the vulnerable kernel extension API is reachableThis vulnerability is in the kernel extension loading API. Any app that can query the OSBundleMachOHeaders key in a kernel extension response could exploit this. Verify no third-party kernel extensions with this key are loaded using 'kextstat' in Terminal on OS XAffected if Running an affected OS version means the kernel API itself is vulnerable, regardless of whether a malicious app has been installed
If the device runs iOS 8.1.2 or earlier, OS X 10.10.1 or earlier, or tvOS 7.0.1 or earlier, the kernel extension API is vulnerable and memory addresses can be exposed, bypassing ASLR.
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 dataApply the vendor-supplied patches by updating iOS to 8.1.3 or later, OS X to 10.10.2 or later, or Apple TV to 7.0.3 or later. This is a kernel-level issue that cannot be remediated through configuration changes; only Apple's patched kernel binaries resolve the vulnerability.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2014-4491 — 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-2014-4491 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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