CVE-2019-8836
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 · uneditedA memory corruption issue was addressed with improved memory handling. This issue is fixed in watchOS 6.1.2, iOS 13.3.1 and iPadOS 13.3.1, tvOS 13.3.1. An application may be able to execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges.
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 confidenceA memory corruption vulnerability in the kernel allowed a malicious application to execute arbitrary code with kernel-level privileges. This was addressed through improved memory handling in the affected Apple operating systems.
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< 13.3.1< 13.3.1< 13.3.1< 6.1.2CVSS 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
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify your Apple device typeDetermine whether the device is an iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, or Apple TV. Each device runs a different operating system (iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, tvOS) and must be checked separately.Affected if Any of these Apple devices are present in your environment.
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Check iOS or iPadOS version on iPhone or iPadOpen the Settings app, tap General, tap About, and note the Version number displayed (for example, 13.3 or 13.2.1).Affected if The version is less than 13.3.1.
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Check watchOS version on Apple WatchOpen the Watch app on your paired iPhone, go to General, tap About, and note the Version number. Alternatively, open the Settings app on the Apple Watch itself, go to General, then About, and check Version.Affected if The version is less than 6.1.2.
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Check tvOS version on Apple TVOpen Settings on Apple TV, go to General, select About, and note the Version number displayed.Affected if The version is less than 13.3.1.
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Compare installed versions to fixed releasesFor each device, compare its current OS version against the fixed releases: iOS 13.3.1 or later, iPadOS 13.3.1 or later, watchOS 6.1.2 or later, tvOS 13.3.1 or later.Affected if Any device runs an OS version below its respective fixed release.
If any Apple mobile device in your environment (iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, or Apple TV) is running an OS version lower than the specified fixed releases, the device is vulnerable to this kernel memory corruption flaw.
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 data6.1.213.3.1
Apply the security update by upgrading to iOS 13.3.1 or later, iPadOS 13.3.1 or later, watchOS 6.1.2 or later, or tvOS 13.3.1 or later on all affected devices.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-8836 — 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-2019-8836 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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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.
- 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