IpadosOperating system · Apple

CVE-2021-30825

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-10-19
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 15.0 or later.
See remediation →
80/100
Remediation priority · High
Zero-click

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
This issue was addressed with improved checks. This issue is fixed in iOS 15 and iPadOS 15. A local attacker may be able to cause unexpected application termination or arbitrary code execution.

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 confidence

A local vulnerability in iOS and iPadOS versions prior to 15 that allowed a local attacker to achieve arbitrary code execution or cause application termination. The fix involved improved validation checks, likely in a privileged component or system service.

MitigationApply iOS/iPadOS 15 or later updates to affected devices. For enterprise deployments, identify and remediate non-compliant devices through mobile device management.

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:< 15.0
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:< 15.0

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
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check iOS version on iPhone devices
    On the iPhone, go to Settings > General > About and note the version number under 'Version'. Alternatively, connect the device to Finder (macOS) or iTunes (Windows) and view the device summary, or query via MDM if enrolled.
    Affected if The version displayed is below 15.0 (for example, 14.x or earlier)
  2. Check iPadOS version on iPad devices
    On the iPad, go to Settings > General > About and note the version number under 'Version'. For bulk enterprise checking, use Apple Configurator or query devices via MDM enrollment.
    Affected if The version displayed is below 15.0 (for example, 14.x or earlier)
  3. Identify affected devices in enterprise fleet
    If using Mobile Device Management (MDM) such as Jamf, Microsoft Intune, or similar, query the enrolled devices for their iOS/iPadOS operating system version. Filter for devices reporting versions less than 15.0.
    Affected if Any devices in the fleet are found running iOS or iPadOS versions prior to 15.0

A device is affected if it is running any version of iOS or iPadOS prior to 15.0, regardless of other configuration, as this is a flaw in the operating system itself that was fixed in version 15.0.

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 15.0 or later
Fixed in 15.0
Interim mitigation

Apply iOS/iPadOS 15 or later updates to affected devices. For enterprise deployments, identify and remediate non-compliant devices through mobile device management.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS 15 and iPadOS 15

  1. Back up your iPhone or iPad using iCloud or your computer
  2. Connect your device to power and Wi-Fi
  3. Go to Settings > General > Software Update
  4. If iOS 15 or later is available, tap Download and Install
  5. Enter your passcode if prompted and confirm the installation
  6. Wait for the update to download and install, keeping the device connected to power and Wi-Fi
  7. After installation, verify the version in Settings > General > About shows iOS 15.0 or later
Caveat iOS 15 introduced feature changes but no major breaking changes for typical usage; some legacy apps may have compatibility issues

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

Fix this in Ipados Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
5.0 hours of engineering $890
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,424.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-30825 — 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 sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-30825 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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