dbcve.org
XcodeApplication · Apple

CVE-2021-1800

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-04-02
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 12.4 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 path handling issue was addressed with improved validation. This issue is fixed in Xcode 12.4. A malicious application may be able to access arbitrary files on the host device while running an app that uses on-demand resources with Xcode.

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 is a path handling vulnerability in Xcode's on-demand resources feature. A malicious application could exploit improper path validation to access arbitrary files on the host device while running an app that uses on-demand resources. The issue was addressed with improved path validation in Xcode 12.4.

MitigationUpgrade to Xcode 12.4 or later to obtain the improved path validation fix. This vulnerability primarily affects development environments using Xcode.

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
XcodeApplication
Affected:< 12.4

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 if Xcode is installed
    Open Xcode and go to Xcode > About Xcode, or run 'xcode-select -p' in Terminal to confirm the Xcode installation path
    Affected if Xcode is not installed or the command fails - the vulnerability does not apply
  2. Determine the installed Xcode version
    In Xcode, go to Xcode > About Xcode to view the version number, or run 'xcodebuild -version' in Terminal
    Affected if The version displayed is less than 12.4 (for example, 12.3, 12.2, 12.0, etc.)
  3. Identify if the project uses On-Demand Resources
    Open the project in Xcode, select the project in the navigator, go to the project Build Settings, and search for 'On-Demand Resources' or inspect the project's .xcodeproj/project.pbxproj file for references to 'onDemandResources' or 'ODR' tags
    Affected if On-Demand Resources are enabled in the project settings or referenced in the project configuration

The environment is affected if Xcode version is below 12.4 AND the project uses On-Demand Resources, as the vulnerability requires both conditions to be exploitable.

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 12.4 or later
Fixed in 12.4
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to Xcode 12.4 or later to obtain the improved path validation fix. This vulnerability primarily affects development environments using Xcode.

Fix this in Xcode Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,090
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,744.

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-2021-1800 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