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IpadosOperating system · Apple

CVE-2021-30960

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-08-24
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 8.3 / 11.6.3 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
A buffer overflow issue was addressed with improved memory handling. This issue is fixed in macOS Monterey 12.1, watchOS 8.3, iOS 15.2 and iPadOS 15.2, tvOS 15.2. Parsing a maliciously crafted audio file may lead to disclosure of user information.

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 buffer overflow vulnerability in the audio file parsing component of multiple Apple operating systems (macOS, iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, tvOS). When parsing a maliciously crafted audio file, the insufficient memory handling allows an attacker to read beyond allocated buffer boundaries, leading to disclosure of user information.

MitigationApply the vendor-supplied patches by updating to macOS Monterey 12.1 or later, iOS/iPadOS 15.2 or later, watchOS 8.3 or later, or tvOS 15.2 or later.

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:< 15.2
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:< 15.2
macOSOperating system
Affected:< 12.1>= 11.0, < 11.6.3
TvosOperating system
Affected:< 15.2
WatchosOperating system
Affected:< 8.3

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 macOS version
    Run 'sw_vers -productVersion' in Terminal or click Apple menu > About This Mac
    Affected if Version is 11.0 to 11.6.2, or 12.0 to 12.0 (before 12.1)
  2. Check iOS or iPadOS version
    Go to Settings > General > About on the device
    Affected if Version is below 15.2 (for example, 15.1, 15.0, 14.x)
  3. Check watchOS version
    Open the Watch app on paired iPhone, go to My Watch > General > About
    Affected if Version is below 8.3
  4. Check tvOS version
    Go to Settings > General > About > Version on Apple TV
    Affected if Version is below 15.2
  5. Confirm audio parsing is in use
    The vulnerability triggers when parsing a crafted audio file. Any user who can open or preview audio files on the affected device could trigger the flaw.
    Affected if Audio file handling is available on the device (standard functionality in all listed OS versions)

If the installed OS version falls below 15.2 for iOS/iPadOS/tvOS/watchOS, or is 11.0-11.6.2 or 12.0-12.0 for macOS, the environment is within the affected range.

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 8.3 / 11.6.3 / 12.1 or later
Fixed in 8.311.6.312.1
Interim mitigation

Apply the vendor-supplied patches by updating to macOS Monterey 12.1 or later, iOS/iPadOS 15.2 or later, watchOS 8.3 or later, or tvOS 15.2 or later.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS 15.2, iPadOS 15.2, macOS 12.1 (Monterey) or 11.6.3 (Big Sur), tvOS 15.2, watchOS 8.3

  1. Identify the current device and OS version (iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, or watchOS)
  2. For iPhone/iPad: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install iOS 15.2/iPadOS 15.2 or later
  3. For Mac: Open System Preferences > Software Update and install macOS Monterey 12.1 or later, or for macOS Big Sur users install 11.6.3 or later
  4. For Apple TV: Go to Settings > System > Software Updates and install tvOS 15.2 or later
  5. For Apple Watch: On iPhone, open Watch app > My Watch > General > Software Update and install watchOS 8.3 or later
  6. After updating, verify the fix by checking Settings/About for the new OS version
Caveat Users on older hardware may not support the new OS versions; some legacy applications may become incompatible with newer OS releases

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

Fix this in Ipados Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
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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-2021-30960 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