dbcve.org
Iphone OsOperating system · Apple

CVE-2019-8731

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2019-12-18
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 13.0 or later.
See remediation →
58/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
No privileges

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 permissions issue existed in which execute permission was incorrectly granted. This issue was addressed with improved permission validation. This issue is fixed in iOS 13. Processing a maliciously crafted file may disclose user information.

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

This iOS vulnerability involved incorrect execute permission validation during file processing. When a maliciously crafted file was processed, the flawed permission checks incorrectly granted execute permissions, potentially allowing disclosure of user information. The issue was addressed through improved permission validation in iOS 13.

MitigationUpdate affected iOS devices to iOS 13 or later to apply the corrected permission validation. For organizations, ensure patch management processes include iOS device updates.

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:< 13.0

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check installed iOS version
    On the iOS device, go to Settings > General > About > Version. Note the version number displayed (for example, 12.4.3).
    Affected if The version shown is below 13.0 (for example, 12.4.3, 12.0, 11.x, etc.)
  2. Confirm iOS major version
    If the version shows only a single number (like 12), assume it represents 12.0 and check whether it is below 13.
    Affected if The major version number is 12 or lower.
  3. Identify device model and iOS capability
    Verify the device model (Settings > General > About > Model Name) and cross-reference with Apple's iOS 13 compatibility list to confirm the device could run iOS 13 if updated.
    Affected if The device supports iOS 13 but is currently running a version below 13.0.

The device is affected if it is currently running any version of iOS prior to 13.0, as the flawed permission validation existed in all earlier releases.

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.

From vendor data
Upgrade available Upgrade to 13.0 or later
Fixed in 13.0
Interim mitigation

Update affected iOS devices to iOS 13 or later to apply the corrected permission validation. For organizations, ensure patch management processes include iOS device updates.

Fix this in Iphone Os Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
3.0 hours of engineering $750
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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-2019-8731 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