CVE-2019-8759
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 · uneditedAn out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved bounds checking. This issue is fixed in macOS Catalina 10.15.1, Security Update 2019-001, and Security Update 2019-006, macOS Catalina 10.15. A local user may be able to cause unexpected system termination or 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 confidenceCVE-2019-8759 is a local privilege escalation vulnerability in macOS Catalina's kernel involving an out-of-bounds read. The flaw allows a local authenticated user to potentially read kernel memory or cause a system crash. The vulnerability was addressed with improved bounds checking in Apple's security 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< 10.15.1CVSS 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
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify the installed macOS versionOpen Terminal and run: sw_vers -productVersionAffected if The command returns a version lower than 10.15.1 (for example, 10.15.0, 10.14.x, etc.)
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Confirm the macOS release nameRun: sw_vers -buildVersion and check the output against known Catalina build numbersAffected if The system is running a macOS Catalina build released before the 10.15.1 security update
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Check if the security update is installedView System Preferences > Security & Privacy > General to see if a security update has been installed after October 2019Affected if No security update dated October 2019 or later is listed as installed
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Verify kernel memory protection statusCheck system logs for any kernel panic entries related to bounds checking using: log show --predicate 'eventMessage contains "bounds"' --last 24hAffected if Recent kernel panics or error messages related to out-of-bounds reads are present
The system is affected if it runs macOS Catalina with a version number below 10.15.1 and has not received the October 2019 security update.
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 data10.15.1
Apply the appropriate macOS security update (Catalina 10.15.1, Security Update 2019-001, or Security Update 2019-006) to all affected macOS Catalina systems. For systems that cannot be immediately patched, consider restricting local user access or implementing additional monitoring.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,544.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-8759 — 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-2019-8759 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data