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Iphone OsOperating system · Apple

CVE-2019-8647

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2019-12-18
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.3 / 12.4 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 use after free issue was addressed with improved memory management. This issue is fixed in iOS 12.4, tvOS 12.4, watchOS 5.3. A remote attacker may be able to cause arbitrary code execution.

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

A use-after-free vulnerability in iOS, tvOS, and watchOS allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code. The vulnerability stems from improper memory management that can be exploited by triggering the use of freed memory, potentially giving attackers control over device execution.

MitigationApply the vendor-supplied updates: iOS 12.4+, tvOS 12.4+, and watchOS 5.3+. In enterprise environments, deploy patches via MDM or other patch management tools and verify completion across all managed devices.

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:< 12.4
TvosOperating system
Affected:< 12.4
WatchosOperating system
Affected:< 5.3

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
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/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 your Apple device type
    Determine whether the device is an iPhone/iPad (iOS), Apple TV (tvOS), or Apple Watch (watchOS). This vulnerability affects all three platforms differently.
    Affected if Device runs iOS, tvOS, or watchOS
  2. Check iOS version on iPhone or iPad
    Open Settings > General > About on the iOS device and locate the 'Version' field (e.g., 12.3.5). Record the full version number.
    Affected if iOS version is less than 12.4 (for example, 12.3, 12.2, 12.1, 12.0, or any 12.x.x version below 12.4)
  3. Check tvOS version on Apple TV
    Go to Settings > General > About on Apple TV and find the 'Version' entry (e.g., 12.3.1). Record the version number.
    Affected if tvOS version is less than 12.4 (for example, 12.3, 12.2, or any 12.x.x version below 12.4)
  4. Check watchOS version on Apple Watch
    On the paired iPhone, open the Watch app, go to General > About, and read the 'WatchOS' version field. Alternatively, check on the Watch itself under Settings > General > About.
    Affected if watchOS version is less than 5.3 (for example, 5.2, 5.1, 5.0, or any 5.x.x version below 5.3)

If any managed iOS device runs version below 12.4, any tvOS device runs below 12.4, or any watchOS device runs below 5.3, the environment is vulnerable to this use-after-free flaw.

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 5.3 / 12.4 or later
Fixed in 5.312.4
Interim mitigation

Apply the vendor-supplied updates: iOS 12.4+, tvOS 12.4+, and watchOS 5.3+. In enterprise environments, deploy patches via MDM or other patch management tools and verify completion across all managed devices.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS 12.4, tvOS 12.4, or watchOS 5.3 (depending on device type)

  1. Back up your device data before updating
  2. Connect your device to Wi-Fi and ensure sufficient battery charge (above 50%)
  3. For iPhone/iPad/iPod touch: Go to Settings > General > Software Update, then download and install iOS 12.4
  4. For Apple TV: Go to Settings > System > Software Updates, then check for and install tvOS 12.4
  5. For Apple Watch: On your iPhone, open the Watch app, go to General > Software Update, then download and install watchOS 5.3
  6. Restart the device after the update completes
Caveat Upgrading to iOS 12.4 from older versions may cause compatibility issues with some third-party apps that have not been updated for iOS 12.4

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
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
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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-2019-8647 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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