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CISA KEV·Added 2022-08-25 — agencies required to remediate by 2022-09-15

CVE-2021-31010

HIGH

A deserialization issue was addressed through improved validation. This issue is fixed in Security Update 2021-005 Catalina, iOS 12.5.5, iOS 14.8 and iPadOS 14.8, macOS Big Sur 11.6,…

Published
Aug 24, 2021
Updated
Jun 17, 2026
Affected
0 pkgs
Patched
None yet
Exploits
4 known

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗
3.7%probability of exploitation in next 30 days
Lower Risk88th percentile0.00%
0.00%1.52%3.04%4.56%1.3%3.7%Jan 26May 26Jul 26

EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.

Description

A deserialization issue was addressed through improved validation. This issue is fixed in Security Update 2021-005 Catalina, iOS 12.5.5, iOS 14.8 and iPadOS 14.8, macOS Big Sur 11.6, watchOS 7.6.2. A sandboxed process may be able to circumvent sandbox restrictions. Apple was aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited at the time of release..

Affected Products

5 products · 22 configurations
OS
ipadosapple
< 14.8
range
OS
iphone osapple
≥ 14.0 && < 14.8
range
OS
mac os xapple
≥ 10.15 && < 10.15.7
1 version
10.15.7
OS
macosapple
≥ 11.0 && < 11.6
range
OS
watchosapple
< 7.6.2
range
Exploits & PoCs
4

Research use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.

Detection & mitigation playbook

Vendor / appliance
  1. Detect

    Inventory every apple ipados deployment and check each version against the affected-products list above. Because the exploit targets the running system rather than your application code, also watch for remote code execution at the network and runtime layer — O3 flags the exploit behaviour from runtime telemetry and egress traffic even before a vulnerable build is confirmed.

  2. Fix

    Apply the apple ipados security patch or hotfix for CVE-2021-31010 on the affected version, following the vendor advisory for your exact build.

  3. Workarounds

    Cut exposure now: restrict the management/admin interface to trusted networks, segment the device, and apply the vendor's recommended configuration mitigations and any WAF/IPS signature. O3's runtime protection blocks the exploit chain at execution, holding the line on unpatched or end-of-life systems until you can patch.

  4. How O3 protects you

    O3 detects and blocks CVE-2021-31010 exploitation at runtime: eBPF exploit-chain detection, plus L7 egress monitoring that catches the post-exploitation callback and severs the attacker's outbound channel.

Tailored to CVE-2021-31010. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.

Frequently Asked Questions

A deserialization issue was addressed through improved validation. This issue is fixed in Security Update 2021-005 Catalina, iOS 12.5.5, iOS 14.8 and iPadOS 14.8, macOS Big Sur 11.6, watchOS 7.6.2. A sandboxed process may be able to circumvent sandbox restrictions. Apple was aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited at the time of release..
O3 Security · Runtime Protection

Is CVE-2021-31010 being exploited in your environment?

O3's eBPF runtime sensors and L7 egress monitoring detect and block the CVE-2021-31010 exploit chain at execution — protecting unpatched and end-of-life systems until the vendor patch is applied.