CVE-2015-7015
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 · uneditedHeap-based buffer overflow in the DNS client library in configd in Apple iOS before 9.1, OS X before 10.11.1, and watchOS before 2.0.1 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted app that sends a spoofed configd response to a client.
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 confidenceHeap-based buffer overflow in the DNS client library in Apple's configd daemon allows a malicious app to send spoofed responses that trigger overflow, potentially enabling arbitrary code execution with the privileges of the affected process.
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<= 2.0.0<= 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
- M
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Partial
- Integrity
- Partial
- Availability
- Partial
AV:N/AC:M/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 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 look at the Version field, or run 'sw_vers' in TerminalAffected if Version is 9.0.2 or lower
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Check watchOS version on Apple WatchOpen the Watch app on paired iPhone, go to My Watch > General > About, or check through Xcode device infoAffected if Version is 2.0.0 or lower
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Check macOS versionClick Apple menu > About This Mac, or run 'sw_vers' in TerminalAffected if Version is 10.11.0 or lower (build 15A240d or earlier)
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Verify configd daemon is runningRun 'sudo launchctl list | grep configd' or check Activity Monitor for configd processAffected if configd process is present and running (this is the vulnerable component)
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Check if device allows installation of untrusted appsOn iOS: go to Settings > General > Profiles or Settings > Device Management to see if any untrusted profiles are installed. On macOS: check System Preferences > Security & General for 'Allow apps downloaded from: Anywhere' settingAffected if Untrusted app profiles are installed on iOS, or 'Anywhere' is enabled on macOS (this allows the malicious app needed to trigger the exploit)
You are affected if your OS version falls within the affected ranges (iOS 9.0.2 or lower, watchOS 2.0.0 or lower, macOS 10.11.0 or lower) AND your device allows installation of untrusted apps, since a malicious app is required to send the spoofed DNS responses that trigger the heap overflow in configd.
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 vendor-supplied OS updates (iOS 9.1+, OS X 10.11.1+, watchOS 2.0.1+) to patch the vulnerable configd component. Restrict app installation to trusted sources to reduce likelihood of malicious apps delivering the exploit.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2015-7015 — 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-2015-7015 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