dbcve.org
IpadosOperating system · Apple

CVE-2021-1846

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-09-08
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 7.4 / 11.3 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
Processing a maliciously crafted audio file may disclose restricted memory. This issue is fixed in Security Update 2021-002 Catalina, iOS 14.5 and iPadOS 14.5, watchOS 7.4, tvOS 14.5, macOS Big Sur 11.3. An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved input validation.

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

An out-of-bounds read vulnerability in Apple’s audio file processing allows a maliciously crafted audio file to disclose restricted memory contents. The vulnerability was addressed through improved input validation during audio file parsing.

MitigationApply the applicable Apple security updates: iOS 14.5 and later, iPadOS 14.5 and later, watchOS 7.4 and later, tvOS 14.5 and later, macOS Big Sur 11.3 and later, or Security Update 2021-002 for Catalina.

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
IpadosOperating system
Affected:< 14.5
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:< 14.5
Mac Os XOperating system
Affected:= 10.15= 10.15.1= 10.15.2= 10.15.3= 10.15.4= 10.15.5= 10.15.6= 10.15.7
macOSOperating system
Affected:>= 11.0, < 11.3
TvosOperating system
Affected:< 14.5
WatchosOperating system
Affected:< 7.4

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. Identify the Apple device or OS product
    Determine whether the system is an iPhone (iOS), iPad (iPadOS), Mac (macOS), Apple Watch (watchOS), or Apple TV (tvOS)
    Affected if The device runs any of the affected Apple operating systems listed in the CVE
  2. Check iOS or iPadOS version on iPhone or iPad
    On the device, go to Settings > General > About and note the version number (for example, 14.4 or 14.4.1)
    Affected if The installed version is lower than 14.5
  3. Check macOS version on Mac computers
    Click the Apple menu > About This Mac and note the macOS version number shown (for example, 11.2 or 10.15.7)
    Affected if Running macOS Big Sur 11.0 through 11.2, or any Catalina version 10.15.0 through 10.15.7
  4. Check watchOS or tvOS version on Apple Watch or Apple TV
    On Apple Watch: open the Watch app on paired iPhone, go to My Watch > General > About. On Apple TV: go to Settings > General > About > Version
    Affected if watchOS is below 7.4 or tvOS is below 14.5

A system is affected if it is any Apple device running iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, or tvOS with a version lower than the fixed releases (iOS/iPadOS/tvOS/watchOS 14.5 or later, macOS Big Sur 11.3 or later, or macOS Catalina with Security Update 2021-002).

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 7.4 / 11.3 / 14.5 or later
Fixed in 7.411.314.5
Interim mitigation

Apply the applicable Apple security updates: iOS 14.5 and later, iPadOS 14.5 and later, watchOS 7.4 and later, tvOS 14.5 and later, macOS Big Sur 11.3 and later, or Security Update 2021-002 for Catalina.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS 14.5, iPadOS 14.5, watchOS 7.4, tvOS 14.5, macOS Big Sur 11.3, or Security Update 2021-002 for Catalina

  1. Identify the Apple device type (iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, Apple TV)
  2. Check the current OS version in Settings > General > About (iOS/iPadOS) or System Preferences > General > Software Update (macOS)
  3. For iPhone/iPad: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install iOS/iPadOS 14.5 or later
  4. For Mac running macOS Catalina: Install Security Update 2021-002 Catalina via System Preferences > Software Update
  5. For Mac running macOS Big Sur 11.0-11.2: Install macOS Big Sur 11.3 via System Preferences > Software Update
  6. For Apple Watch: Install watchOS 7.4 via the Watch app on iPhone
  7. For Apple TV: Install tvOS 14.5 via Settings > System > Software Updates
Caveat Standard OS update; ensure backups before updating

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Ipados Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,420
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,272.

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-2021-1846 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