dbcve.org
Iphone OsOperating system · Apple

CVE-2014-4493

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v2.0 Published 2015-01-30
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 8.1.2 or later.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
The app-installation functionality in MobileInstallation in Apple iOS before 8.1.3 allows attackers to obtain control of the local app container by leveraging access to an enterprise distribution certificate for signing 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 confidence

Vulnerability in MobileInstallation component of Apple iOS before 8.1.3 allows attackers with access to an enterprise distribution certificate to sign a crafted app that, when installed, provides control over the local app container. This is a privilege-escalation issue where a maliciously-signed enterprise app can escape its sandbox bounds.

MitigationUpdate iOS devices to version 8.1.3 or later. Additionally, organizations should revoke and carefully control enterprise distribution certificates to prevent misuse.

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
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:<= 8.1.2

CVSS 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
Partial
Availability
Partial

AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P

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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Verify iOS version
    Go to Settings > General > About > Version and note the displayed version number
    Affected if The version number is 8.1.2 or lower
  2. Identify enterprise-provisioned apps
    Check the device for applications installed outside the Apple App Store, typically provided by your organization. Review installed apps list in Settings > General > Device Management or Settings > General > Profiles & Device Management (on older iOS versions).
    Affected if Any apps are installed via enterprise distribution certificate (outside App Store)
  3. Confirm MobileInstallation exposure
    This vulnerability requires the MobileInstallation component to be accessible. On non-jailbroken devices, this component handles app installation. The risk is present if enterprise apps can be installed without proper certificate controls.
    Affected if Enterprise distribution certificates are active and can be used to install arbitrary apps

You are affected if your device runs iOS 8.1.2 or earlier AND has enterprise distribution certificates enabled that could allow installation of maliciously-signed apps.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 data
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 8.1.2
Interim mitigation

Update iOS devices to version 8.1.3 or later. Additionally, organizations should revoke and carefully control enterprise distribution certificates to prevent misuse.

Fix this in Iphone Os Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2014-4493 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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