CVE-2018-4448
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 · uneditedA memory initialization issue was addressed with improved memory handling. This issue is fixed in macOS Mojave 10.14.4, Security Update 2019-002 High Sierra, Security Update 2019-002 Sierra, iOS 12.1.1, watchOS 5.1.2, macOS Mojave 10.14.2, Security Update 2018-003 High Sierra, Security Update 2018-006 Sierra, tvOS 12.1.1. A local user may be able to read kernel memory.
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 confidenceA memory initialization vulnerability in the macOS, iOS, watchOS, and tvOS kernels allows a local unprivileged user to read kernel memory due to improper handling of memory initialization. This information disclosure issue requires local access to the system.
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< 12.1.1>= 10.12.6, < 10.14.4>= 10.13.6, < 10.14.2< 12.1.1< 5.1.2CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
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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Identify the operating system and versionRun 'sw_vers' on macOS, check Settings > General > About on iOS/tvOS/watchOS, or use 'system_profiler SPSoftwareDataType' for detailed macOS version infoAffected if Unable to determine OS version or version falls outside known supported ranges
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Check if macOS version is vulnerableOn macOS, run 'sw_vers -productVersion' to get the exact version number (e.g., 10.13.6, 10.14.1) and compare against the affected ranges: 10.12.6 through 10.14.3, or 10.13.6 through 10.14.1Affected if macOS version is 10.12.6 to 10.14.3, or 10.13.6 to 10.14.1 (any version less than 10.14.4 on 10.14.x or less than 10.14.2 on 10.13.x)
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Check if iOS version is vulnerableOn iOS device, go to Settings > General > About > Version to see the iOS version numberAffected if iOS version is less than 12.1.1 (e.g., 12.1, 12.0.x, 11.x)
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Check if tvOS version is vulnerableOn Apple TV, go to Settings > General > About > Version to see the tvOS version numberAffected if tvOS version is less than 12.1.1
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Check if watchOS version is vulnerableOn Apple Watch, pair with iPhone, go to Settings > General > About on the watch, or check via Watch app on iPhoneAffected if watchOS version is less than 5.1.2
The system is affected if it runs any macOS version from 10.12.6 to 10.14.3, iOS before 12.1.1, tvOS before 12.1.1, or watchOS before 5.1.2.
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 data5.1.210.14.210.14.4
Apply the appropriate Apple security updates (Security Update 2019-002, 2018-003, 2018-006, or macOS/iOS/watchOS/tvOS 12.1.1+/10.14.2+) to patched versions as listed in the CVE references.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-4448 — 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-2018-4448 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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- 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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