CVE-2015-6988
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 kernel in Apple iOS before 9.1 and OS X before 10.11.1 does not initialize an unspecified data structure, which allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via vectors involving an unknown network-connectivity requirement.
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 confidenceA kernel-level vulnerability in Apple iOS before 9.1 and OS X before 10.11.1 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code due to an uninitialized data structure. The specific data structure and precise network-connectivity requirements for exploitation are not detailed in available documentation.
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<= 9.0.2<= 10.11.0CVSS 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
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:N/AC:L/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 iPadOn the device, open Settings > General > About and read the 'Version' field. Alternatively, connect the device to a computer with iTunes and view the device summary page.Affected if The version displayed is 9.0.2 or earlier (any version up to and including 9.0.2).
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Check OS X version on MacClick the Apple menu in the top-left corner and select 'About This Mac'. Alternatively, open Terminal and run the command: sw_vers -productVersionAffected if The version displayed is 10.11.0 or earlier (any version up to and including 10.11.0).
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Compare against affected rangesReview the version numbers obtained from the previous steps. iOS affected range is any version <= 9.0.2. OS X affected range is any version <= 10.11.0.Affected if The installed iOS version is 9.0.2 or lower, OR the installed OS X version is 10.11.0 or lower.
A user is affected if their iPhone or iPad runs iOS 9.0.2 or earlier, or their Mac runs OS X 10.11.0 or earlier.
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 · scopedUpdate affected devices to iOS 9.1 or later, and Macs to OS X 10.11.1 (El Capitan) or later to remediate this vulnerability.
iOS 9.1 or later; Mac OS X 10.11.1 (El Capitan) or later
- For iOS devices: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and upgrade to iOS 9.1 or later
- For Mac OS X: Go to Apple Menu > System Preferences > Software Update and upgrade to OS X 10.11.1 (El Capitan) or later, or download the update from Apple Support
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2015-6988 — 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-2015-6988 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
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