CVE-2021-30869

Exp

A type confusion issue was addressed with improved state handling. This issue is fixed in iOS 12.5.5, iOS 14.4 and iPadOS 14.4, macOS Big Sur 11.2, Security Update 2021-001 Catalina, Security Update 2021-001 Mojave, Security Update 2021-006 Catalina. A malicious application may be able to execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges. Apple is aware of reports that an exploit for this issue exists in the wild.

Published: 2021-08-24 Last update: 2025-10-23 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2021-30869 is rated Critical Active Threat (85/100): CVSS High severity, with medium exploitation likelihood (EPSS 1.72%). Core evidence: CISA KEV confirms active exploitation (added 2021-11-03) affecting Apple / iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. a weakness (CWE-843) Unauthenticated remote administrative access may be possible. Mandatory action: The CISA remediation deadline has passed—treat as an emergency patch priority.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

CISA KEV Record for CVE-2021-30869

Name: Apple iOS, iPadOS, and macOS Type Confusion Vulnerability · CISA KEV detail

Exploit added: 2021-11-03

Action due: 2021-11-17

Required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2021-30869

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-05-10 1.77% 1.72% -0.05%
2 2026-04-27 1.72% 1.77% +0.05%
3 2026-04-15 1.72%

Full EPSS history (23 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2021-30869

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
7.8 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:R)
A real person has to do something—click, install, enable—otherwise it doesn’t land.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
1.8 5.9 [email protected]
7.8 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:L)
They already need access on the box, or another person has to do something wrong; it’s not a remote drive-by.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:R)
A real person has to do something—click, install, enable—otherwise it doesn’t land.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
1.8 5.9 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0
9.3 2.0 HIGH
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C Click to expand
Access vector (AV:N)
Can be exploited remotely over network reachability.
Access complexity (AC:M)
Exploitation needs some favorable conditions, but not exceptional ones.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:C)
Complete confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:C)
Complete integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:C)
Complete availability impact.
8.6 10.0 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2021-30869

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2021-30869

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
apple ipados < 14.4 cpe:2.3:o:apple:ipados:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple iphone_os >= 12.0, < 12.5.5 cpe:2.3:o:apple:iphone_os:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple iphone_os >= 14.0, < 14.4 cpe:2.3:o:apple:iphone_os:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x >= 10.14, <= 10.14.6 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x >= 10.15, <= 10.15.6 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.14.6 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.14.6:security_update_2019-001:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.14.6 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.14.6:security_update_2019-002:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.14.6 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.14.6:security_update_2019-004:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.14.6 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.14.6:security_update_2019-005:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.14.6 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.14.6:security_update_2019-006:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.14.6 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.14.6:security_update_2019-007:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.14.6 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.14.6:security_update_2020-001:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.14.6 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.14.6:security_update_2020-002:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.14.6 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.14.6:security_update_2020-003:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.14.6 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.14.6:security_update_2020-004:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.14.6 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.14.6:security_update_2020-005:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.14.6 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.14.6:security_update_2020-006:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.14.6 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.14.6:security_update_2020-007:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:-:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2020:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2020-001:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2020-005:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2020-007:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2021-002:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2021-003:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2021-004:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:security_update_2021-005:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple mac_os_x 10.15.7 cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x:10.15.7:supplemental_update:*:*:*:*:*:*
apple macos >= 11.0, < 11.2 cpe:2.3:o:apple:macos:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2021-30869

cvelogic Threat Intelligence