dbcve.org
Iphone OsOperating system · Apple

CVE-2019-8760

MEDIUM · 6.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2019-12-18
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 13.0 or later.
See remediation →
73/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
This issue was addressed by improving Face ID machine learning models. This issue is fixed in iOS 13. A 3D model constructed to look like the enrolled user may authenticate via Face ID.

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

Face ID in iOS 13 can be bypassed using a 3D model constructed to resemble the enrolled user's face, allowing unauthorized authentication via the biometric system.

MitigationUpgrade affected iOS devices to iOS 13 or later where Apple improved Face ID machine learning models to detect and reject 3D facial replicas.

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:P/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. Check iOS version
    Go to Settings > General > About > Version, or connect device to computer and check via iTunes/Finder or ideviceinfo
    Affected if Version is less than 13.0 (e.g., 12.4.x, 12.3.x, etc.)
  2. Verify Face ID is enabled
    Go to Settings > Face ID & Passcode and confirm Face ID is turned on
    Affected if Face ID status shows as enabled and configured with a enrolled face
  3. Confirm device model eligibility
    Check if device supports Face ID (iPhone X and later) - go to Settings > General > About > Model Name
    Affected if Device is an iPhone X, XS, XR, or later running iOS 12.x

User is affected if device runs iOS version below 13.0, has Face ID enabled, and is a Face ID-capable device (iPhone X or newer).

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

Upgrade affected iOS devices to iOS 13 or later where Apple improved Face ID machine learning models to detect and reject 3D facial replicas.

Fix this in Iphone Os Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.

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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-2019-8760 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