CVE-2021-28653
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 · uneditedThe iOS and macOS apps before 1.4.1 for the Western Digital G-Technology ArmorLock NVMe SSD store keys insecurely. They choose a non-preferred storage mechanism if the device has Secure Enclave support but lacks biometric authentication hardware.
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 confidenceThe Western Digital G-Technology ArmorLock NVMe SSD iOS and macOS mobile applications before version 1.4.1 implement insecure key storage logic. When detecting a device with Secure Enclave support that lacks biometric authentication hardware, the applications fall back to a non-preferred (less secure) key storage mechanism rather than utilizing available Secure Enclave protection, potentially exposing encryption keys to extraction.
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< 1.4.1CVSS 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
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/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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Verify ArmorLock app is installedOn iOS: Open App Store, go to Purchased > search for ArmorLock. On macOS: Open App Store > Purchased > search for ArmorLock, or check /Applications folder for ArmorLock app.Affected if ArmorLock app is present on the device
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Check installed ArmorLock version on iOSOpen App Store > tap your profile icon > scroll to ArmorLock in purchased apps, or open ArmorLock app > go to Settings > About to view version number.Affected if Version shown is lower than 1.4.1 (for example, 1.4.0, 1.3.x, or earlier)
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Check installed ArmorLock version on macOSOpen App Store > click your profile > view purchased apps, or open ArmorLock app > ArmorLock menu > About ArmorLock to see the version.Affected if Version shown is lower than 1.4.1 (for example, 1.4.0, 1.3.x, or earlier)
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Confirm device has Secure Enclave but lacks biometric hardwareIdentify the exact iOS device model (Settings > General > About > Model Name). Cross-reference with Apple specifications to verify the device has Secure Enclave processor but does NOT have Touch ID or Face ID (these are very old devices like iPhone 5s or early iPad models that lack both).Affected if Device has Secure Enclave (most iPhone 6 and later, iPad Pro/Air 2+) but has no Touch ID or Face ID capability
A user is affected if the ArmorLock app version is below 1.4.1 AND the device has a Secure Enclave but lacks biometric authentication hardware, as the app would have used insecure key storage logic.
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 data1.4.1
Update the ArmorLock mobile application to version 1.4.1 or later on affected iOS and macOS devices to ensure proper Secure Enclave key storage regardless of biometric hardware availability.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-28653 — 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-2021-28653 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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- 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