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Iphone OsOperating system · Apple

CVE-2015-7112

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2015-12-11
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 10.11.1 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
The IOHIDFamily API in Apple iOS before 9.2, OS X before 10.11.2, tvOS before 9.1, and watchOS before 2.1 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code in a privileged context or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via a crafted app, a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-7111.

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

Memory corruption vulnerability in the IOHIDFamily API (Human Input/Output Device) that allows a crafted malicious app to execute arbitrary code in a privileged context or cause denial of service through heap/stack memory corruption. The vulnerability exists in the kernel-level input device handling subsystem.

MitigationApply Apple vendor patches by updating to iOS 9.2 and later, OS X 10.11.2 and later, tvOS 9.1 and later, and watchOS 2.1 and later. Prioritize updates on any devices running affected versions.

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:<= 9.1
TvosOperating system
Affected:<= 9.0
WatchosOperating system
Affected:<= 2.0
Mac Os XOperating system
Affected:<= 10.11.1

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. Determine the macOS version
    Click the Apple menu, select 'About This Mac', and note the version number displayed under the macOS name
    Affected if The version is 10.11.1 or earlier
  2. Check if IOHIDFamily kernel extension is loaded
    Run 'kextstat | grep IOHIDFamily' in Terminal to list loaded kernel extensions matching IOHIDFamily
    Affected if The IOHIDFamily kext appears in the loaded list (this is typical on systems with HID devices)
  3. Identify iOS device version
    On iPhone or iPad, go to Settings > General > About > Version, or connect device and run 'ideviceinfo' via libimobiledevice
    Affected if The iOS version is 9.1 or earlier
  4. Identify tvOS version
    Go to Settings > General > About > Version on Apple TV
    Affected if The tvOS version is 9.0 or earlier
  5. Identify watchOS version
    Open the Watch app on paired iPhone, go to General > About, or check on Apple Watch via Settings > General > About
    Affected if The watchOS version is 2.0 or earlier

A system is affected if it runs macOS 10.11.1 or earlier, iOS 9.1 or earlier, tvOS 9.0 or earlier, or watchOS 2.0 or earlier AND has the IOHIDFamily kernel extension active, which is standard on Apple devices with human input devices.

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 10.11.1
Interim mitigation

Apply Apple vendor patches by updating to iOS 9.2 and later, OS X 10.11.2 and later, tvOS 9.1 and later, and watchOS 2.1 and later. Prioritize updates on any devices running affected versions.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS 9.2+, macOS 10.11.2+, tvOS 9.1+, watchOS 2.1+

  1. For iOS devices: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install iOS 9.2 or later
  2. For Mac computers: Open the App Store > Updates and install macOS 10.11.2 (El Capitan) or later security update
  3. For Apple TV: Go to Settings > System > Software Updates and install tvOS 9.1 or later
  4. For Apple Watch: Pair with iPhone and update to watchOS 2.1 or later through the Watch app on iPhone
  5. After updating, verify the device is running the fixed version via Settings > General > About (iOS) or System Preferences > Software Update (macOS)
Caveat Standard OS update considerations apply - backup data before updating, some older apps may become incompatible with newer OS versions

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

Fix this in Iphone Os Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,040
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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-2015-7112 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