Threats / Apple / CVE-2021-30869
CVE-2021-30869
· EUVD no mirror located
· GCVE no mirror located
Verified 2026-06-22
Apple iOS, iPadOS, and macOS vulnerability
A type confusion vulnerability in XNU kernel code allows malicious applications to execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS.
Verdict
Today item — known-exploited.
This kernel privilege escalation vulnerability enables local attackers with app execution capability to bypass security boundaries and gain complete system control. Active exploitation in the wild demonstrates practical threat.
01
Is it exploitable?
— the evidence, ranked above the scoreReported exploitation
8 independent public reports of in-the-wild exploitation are cataloged.Distinct reporting sources (vendor, incident response, government); open them for the underlying claims.
Exploited in the wild
Listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2021-11-03).
Probability (EPSS)
EPSS 0.0415 — modeled likelihood of exploitation activity.EPSS is a daily-changing model output — open the source for today's value.
Severity / affected
Affected: Apple, iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. Confirm exact fixed builds in the vendor advisory.
Weakness (CWE)
Mapped to CWE-843 Type Confusion — weakness family: Memory safety.CWE assignment from the public NVD record; the weakness class drives how the flaw is exploited.
02
Who’s exploiting it?
— attribution turns risk into urgencyAttribution not established
No confirmed (advisory-backed) threat-actor attribution is established for this record. Absence of a named actor is not absence of compromise — see Coverage & confidence.
03
Why it matters
— the attack path, told twice: adversary, then board1
Front door — unauthenticated access narrative 1
Attacker
I craft a malicious application that exploits type confusion in XNU kernel memory handling.
Business
User device security perimeter is compromised; attacker gains kernel-level code execution.
2
Keys to the kingdom — privilege/identity takeover narrative 2
Attacker
I trigger the type confusion by passing specially crafted objects to vulnerable kernel interfaces.
Business
All security controls enforced at user-space level become ineffective; kernel integrity is violated.
3
Lateral reach — past segmentation narrative 3
Attacker
I execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges to install persistent backdoors or exfiltrate sensitive data.
Business
Complete compromise of device confidentiality, integrity, and availability; potential for enterprise or personal data breach.
04
What to do
— defensible action- Remediate per the vendor advisory — confirm the fixed build for your version and verify exposure.1
Say it to the boardA vulnerability with this evidence profile is a defensible budget line, not a backlog ticket — fund the change against the proof above.
05