CVE-2020-9811
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 information disclosure issue was addressed with improved state management. This issue is fixed in iOS 13.5 and iPadOS 13.5, macOS Catalina 10.15.5, tvOS 13.4.5, watchOS 6.2.5. A local user may be able to 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 confidenceThis is a local information disclosure vulnerability in Apple operating systems (iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, watchOS) where improper state management allows a local authenticated user to read kernel memory. The vulnerability is fixed in the vendor-supplied updates listed in the description.
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< 13.5< 13.5< 10.15.5< 13.4.5< 6.2.5CVSS 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify the Apple operating systemOn iOS/iPadOS: Settings > General > About. On macOS: Apple menu > About This Mac. On tvOS: Settings > General > About. On watchOS: Settings > General > About.Affected if The device runs iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, or watchOS
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Check the installed iOS versionOn the device, go to Settings > General > About and note the Version number.Affected if iOS version is lower than 13.5
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Check the installed iPadOS versionOn the device, go to Settings > General > About and note the Version number.Affected if iPadOS version is lower than 13.5
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Check the installed macOS versionRun 'sw_vers -productVersion' in Terminal, or go to Apple menu > About This Mac.Affected if macOS version is lower than 10.15.5
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Check the installed tvOS versionGo to Settings > General > About on the Apple TV device.Affected if tvOS version is lower than 13.4.5
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Check the installed watchOS versionOn the Apple Watch, go to Settings > General > About, or open the Watch app on iPhone and check About.Affected if watchOS version is lower than 6.2.5
A user is affected if their device runs any of these Apple operating systems with a version number lower than the fixed release for that platform.
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 data6.2.510.15.513.4.5
Apply the appropriate Apple security update for each affected platform: iOS 13.5, iPadOS 13.5, macOS Catalina 10.15.5, tvOS 13.4.5, or watchOS 6.2.5. For enterprise environments, use MDM to verify deployment across all managed devices.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation3.0 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-2020-9811 — 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-2020-9811 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