Skip to main content
ExploitedIn CISA KEVFix available

CVE-2020-9859

Exploitation confirmed. First attested on 2021-11-03 by CISA-ADP, CISA KEV, GCVE · kevintel.

  • Published2020-06-05
  • Fixed in13.5.1
  • WeaknessCWE-415

Am I affected?

With a domain, we read the version its public headers and pages expose. A distribution build can carry the fix under an older number.

Description

A memory consumption issue was addressed with improved memory handling. This issue is fixed in iOS 13.5.1 and iPadOS 13.5.1, macOS Catalina 10.15.5 Supplemental Update, tvOS 13.4.6, watchOS 6.2.6. An application may be able to execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges.

Timeline

dates in UTC
  1. 2020-06-0515:15CVE publishedNVD
  2. 2021-11-03Added to the CISA KEV catalogCISA KEV
  3. 2021-11-03Listed as exploited by GCVEGCVE
  4. 2021-11-03Exploitation first reportedCISA KEV
  5. 2025-01-2917:39SSVC exploitation set to activeCISA-ADP

Observed activity

isMalicious corpus · updated 2026-11-03 15:37 UTC
Indicators tagged with this CVE, per day0 indicators over 7 days
Block these indicators
  • Firewall list (EDL, text): https://api.ismalicious.com/edl/cve/CVE-2020-9859?format=txt
  • CSV export: https://api.ismalicious.com/edl/cve/CVE-2020-9859?format=csv
  • TAXII collection of exploited CVEs
  • The EDL and CSV take an API key on the Pro plan.

Versions per branch

NVD
Apple ipados
BranchAffectedFixed in
13.5< 13.5.113.5.1
Apple iphone os
BranchAffectedFixed in
13.5< 13.5.113.5.1
Apple mac os x
BranchAffectedFixed in
10.15< 10.15.510.15.5

2 more products in the sources.

as publishedRanges as NVD and OSV publish them; a distribution’s build can be fixed under an older number.

Products declared by the CNA4 products

As apple, the CNA that assigned this CVE, declared them in the CVE record; versions as written.

  • Apple iOS
    Affected
    • < iOS 13.5.1 and iPadOS 13.5.1fixed in iOS 13.5.1 and iPadOS 13.5.1custom
  • Apple macOS
    Affected
    • < macOS Catalina 10.15.5 Supplemental Updatefixed in macOS Catalina 10.15.5 Supplemental Updatecustom
  • Apple tvOS
    Affected
    • < tvOS 13.4.6fixed in tvOS 13.4.6custom
  • Apple watchOS
    Affected
    • < watchOS 6.2.6fixed in watchOS 6.2.6custom

Source: the CNA record (CVE Program), © The MITRE Corporation,CVE Terms of UseCVE recordupdated 2020-06-05

Fix

  1. Update Apple ipados to 13.5.1
  2. CISA’s required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.due 2022-05-03

Advisories and patches

Detection

Nuclei template
none so far
ProjectDiscovery
Exploit-DB
no entry
Exploit-DB
Proof-of-concept repositories
none listed
PoC-in-GitHub
Metasploit modules
none listed
Metasploit Framework

CISA Known Exploited Vulnerability

Date Added
2021-11-03
Patch Due Date
2022-05-03
Ransomware Use
Unknown
Required Action
Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Sources

Identifiers

Technical details

CVSS v3 Vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Published
2020-06-05
Last Modified
2026-06-17
NVD status
Analyzed
GitHub Advisory
GHSA-frwv-8c9x-7766

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2020-9859?

A memory consumption issue was addressed with improved memory handling. This issue is fixed in iOS 13.5.1 and iPadOS 13.5.1, macOS Catalina 10.15.5 Supplemental Update, tvOS 13.4.6, watchOS 6.2.6. An application may be able to execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges.

Is CVE-2020-9859 actively exploited?

Yes. CVE-2020-9859 is on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, meaning it has been confirmed as actively exploited in the wild. CISA requires federal agencies to patch by 2022-05-03.

What is the CVSS score for CVE-2020-9859?

CVE-2020-9859 has a CVSS v3 base score of 7.8 (HIGH severity), with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.

Hear about the next vulnerability in your software

Surveillance reads the versions in your stack — a domain, a lockfile or a list — checks each CVE against the ranges its sources publish, and alerts you when one you run is exploited or enters CISA KEV. A version it cannot read stays « version not verified ».

Get alerts for this productCISA KEV additions, November 2021Search CVEs

No credit card required · No monthly cap on website lookups · 250 API requests/month

Go further

Related vulnerabilities

Same product first, then the same vendor advisory and the same publication week.

Back to CVE Database

Sources for this record