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Iphone OsOperating system · Apple

CVE-2019-8527

CRITICAL · 9.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2019-12-18
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.2 / 10.14.4 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
A buffer overflow was addressed with improved size validation. This issue is fixed in iOS 12.2, macOS Mojave 10.14.4, tvOS 12.2, watchOS 5.2. A remote attacker may be able to cause unexpected system termination or corrupt 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 · moderate confidence

A buffer overflow vulnerability in Apple kernel components affecting iOS 12.2 and earlier, macOS Mojave 10.14.4 and earlier, tvOS 12.2 and earlier, and watchOS 5.2 and earlier. A remote attacker could trigger the overflow via maliciously crafted network packets or content, leading to kernel memory corruption or system crash.

MitigationApply the vendor patches: update to iOS 12.2, macOS Mojave 10.14.4, tvOS 12.2, or watchOS 5.2 or later. Prioritize externally-facing devices and those processing untrusted network content.

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:< 12.2
Mac Os XOperating system
Affected:< 10.14.4
TvosOperating system
Affected:< 12.2
WatchosOperating system
Affected:< 5.2

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
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H

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. Identify the Apple product running
    Determine if the system is running iOS, macOS, tvOS, or watchOS. On macOS, run 'sw_vers' or check About This Mac. On iOS/tvOS/watchOS, check Settings > General > About.
    Affected if The device is an Apple product in the affected product line (iOS, macOS, tvOS, watchOS)
  2. Check the installed version number
    Retrieve the exact OS version: On macOS, run 'sw_vers -productVersion' in Terminal. On iOS/tvOS/watchOS, note the version number shown in Settings > General > About.
    Affected if The version number cannot be determined or is below the threshold
  3. Compare version against affected ranges
    Verify the installed version against: iOS < 12.2, macOS < 10.14.4, tvOS < 12.2, watchOS < 5.2. Any version below these thresholds is affected.
    Affected if The installed version is below iOS 12.2, macOS 10.14.4, tvOS 12.2, or watchOS 5.2 respectively
  4. Assess exposure context
    Determine if the device processes untrusted network traffic or content. This includes servers exposed to the internet, devices running untrusted apps, or systems handling content from unknown sources.
    Affected if The device is network-facing or processes untrusted content, AND runs an affected version

A system is affected if it runs iOS, macOS, tvOS, or watchOS with a version lower than 12.2, 10.14.4, 12.2, or 5.2 respectively, especially if network-facing or processing untrusted content.

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 5.2 / 10.14.4 / 12.2 or later
Fixed in 5.210.14.412.2
Interim mitigation

Apply the vendor patches: update to iOS 12.2, macOS Mojave 10.14.4, tvOS 12.2, or watchOS 5.2 or later. Prioritize externally-facing devices and those processing untrusted network content.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS 12.2, macOS Mojave 10.14.4, tvOS 12.2, or watchOS 5.2 (depending on device)

  1. For iOS devices: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install iOS 12.2
  2. For Mac: Go to System Preferences > Software Update and install macOS Mojave 10.14.4
  3. For Apple TV: Go to Settings > System > Software Updates and install tvOS 12.2
  4. For Apple Watch: Pair with iPhone, go to Watch app > General > Software Update and install watchOS 5.2

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

Fix this in Iphone Os Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
16.0 hours of engineering $2,800
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Scan for this in your stack

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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-2019-8527 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