dbcve.org
Mac Os XOperating system · Apple

CVE-2015-3768

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2015-08-16
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 10.10.4 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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
Integer overflow in the kernel in Apple iOS before 8.4.1 and OS X before 10.10.5 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code in a privileged context via a crafted app that makes unspecified IOKit API calls.

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

Integer overflow vulnerability in the Apple kernel via crafted IOKit API calls allows a malicious app to achieve arbitrary code execution in a privileged (kernel) context. Affects iOS before 8.4.1 and OS X before 10.10.5.

MitigationApply vendor patches by updating iOS to version 8.4.1 or later and OS X to version 10.10.5 or later.

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
Mac Os XOperating system
Affected:<= 10.10.4
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:<= 8.4

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
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 checks

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

  1. Check OS X version on Mac systems
    Run 'sw_vers -productVersion' in Terminal or view About This Mac
    Affected if Version is 10.10.4 or earlier (10.10.4, 10.10.3, 10.10.2, etc.)
  2. Check iOS version on iPhone/iPad
    Navigate to Settings > General > About > Version on the device
    Affected if Version is 8.4 or earlier (8.4, 8.3, 8.2, 8.1, 8.0, etc.)
  3. Verify IOKit framework is present
    Check for existence of /System/Library/Frameworks/IOKit.framework on OS X
    Affected if Framework exists (required for the vulnerability to be exploitable)
  4. Confirm kernel is running vulnerable code
    Run 'uname -a' to confirm kernel version matches affected OS version range
    Affected if Kernel version corresponds to OS X 10.10.4 or earlier, or the system has not been patched to the fixed OS versions

You are affected if the device runs iOS 8.4 or earlier, or OS X 10.10.4 or earlier, and the IOKit framework is present and accessible.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 10.10.4
Interim mitigation

Apply vendor patches by updating iOS to version 8.4.1 or later and OS X to version 10.10.5 or later.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS 8.4.1 or later for iPhone/iPad; OS X 10.10.5 or later for Mac

  1. For iOS devices: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install iOS 8.4.1 or later
  2. For Mac OS X: Go to Apple Menu > Software Update and install OS X 10.10.5 or later
  3. Alternatively, manually download the security update from support.apple.com/kb/DL1832 for OS X or update via iTunes for iOS
  4. After updating, verify the version in Settings > General > About (iOS) or Apple Menu > About This Mac (OS X)
Caveat Standard OS update - backup data before upgrading as a precaution

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Mac Os X Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
5.0 hours of engineering $890
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,424.

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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-2015-3768 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