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IpadosOperating system · Apple

CVE-2021-30979

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-08-24
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 10.15.7 / 11.6.2 or later.
See remediation →
81/100
Remediation priority · High
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, iOS 15.2 and iPadOS 15.2, macOS Big Sur 11.6.2, Security Update 2021-008 Catalina. Processing a maliciously crafted USD file may lead to 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 buffer overflow vulnerability exists in the USD (Universal Scene Description) file parsing components across macOS and iOS. Processing a maliciously crafted USD file with specially crafted data can overflow a memory buffer, leading to memory corruption that enables either denial of service (application crash) or arbitrary code execution with the privileges of the application parsing the file.

MitigationApply the vendor-supplied security updates: macOS Monterey 12.1, iOS 15.2/iPadOS 15.2, macOS Big Sur 11.6.2, or Security Update 2021-008 for Catalina. Until patched, avoid opening USD files from untrusted or unknown sources.

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
Mac Os XOperating system
Affected:>= 10.15, < 10.15.7= 10.15.7
macOSOperating system
Affected:>= 11.0, < 11.6.2>= 12.0, < 12.1

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
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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 macOS version
    Run 'sw_vers' or go to Apple menu > About This Mac to determine the installed macOS version
    Affected if Version is 10.15.7, or between 10.15 and 10.15.7, or between 11.0 and 11.6.2, or between 12.0 and 12.1
  2. Check iOS/iPadOS version
    Go to Settings > General > About on iPhone or iPad to determine the iOS/iPadOS version
    Affected if Version is less than 15.2
  3. Identify USD parsing applications
    Check for applications that process USD files such as Final Cut Pro, Motion, Compressor, or third-party USD viewers installed on the system
    Affected if Any USD-capable application is installed and the OS version falls within the affected ranges above
  4. Verify USD framework presence
    Run 'ls /System/Library/Frameworks/ | grep -i usd' or check for presence of USD framework in Application directories
    Affected if USD framework or USD-enabled applications are present on an affected OS version
  5. Inspect running processes for USD activity
    Use Activity Monitor to see if any applications are currently parsing USD files, or check recent file access logs for .usd, .usda, .usdc, .usdz file extensions
    Affected if USD files are being processed on a vulnerable system

The system is affected if it runs macOS 10.15.7, 10.15.x, 11.0-11.6.2, or 12.0-12.1, or iOS/iPadOS prior to 15.2, and has USD file parsing capabilities enabled through installed applications or frameworks.

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 10.15.7 / 11.6.2 / 12.1 or later
Fixed in 10.15.711.6.212.1
Interim mitigation

Apply the vendor-supplied security updates: macOS Monterey 12.1, iOS 15.2/iPadOS 15.2, macOS Big Sur 11.6.2, or Security Update 2021-008 for Catalina. Until patched, avoid opening USD files from untrusted or unknown sources.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS 15.2 / iPadOS 15.2 / macOS Big Sur 11.6.2 / macOS Monterey 12.1 / Security Update 2021-008 for Catalina (10.15.7)

  1. Identify the current version of macOS, iOS, or iPadOS on the affected device
  2. For iPhone and iPad: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install iOS 15.2 or iPadOS 15.2
  3. For macOS Big Sur (11.x): Go to System Preferences > Software Update and install macOS Big Sur 11.6.2
  4. For macOS Monterey (12.x): Go to System Preferences > Software Update and install macOS Monterey 12.1
  5. For macOS Catalina (10.15.x): Install Security Update 2021-008 (or update to macOS 10.15.7 if not already on that version)
  6. After updating, verify the installation was successful by checking the installed version matches the fixed release
Caveat Standard OS update risks apply - ensure backups exist before updating, as with any system update

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

Fix this in Ipados 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
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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-2021-30979 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