Apple has released OS 14.8 bringing two major fixes that have been implemented for issues that Apple says may have been actively exploited.
Apple has also released watchOS 7.6.2 with similar security fixes for Apple Watch Series 3 and later.
The first security issue fixed in iOS 14.8 is a vulnerability in Apple’s CoreGraphics framework, where processing a maliciously crafted PDF may allow an attacker to execute code.
The second security hole fixed in iOS 14.8 is in the Apple WebKit browser engine, where processing malicious web content could allow an adversary to execute code.
CoreGraphics
Available for: iPhone 6s and later, iPad Pro (all models), iPad Air 2 and later, iPad 5th generation and later, iPad mini 4 and later, and iPod touch (7th generation)
Impact: Processing a maliciously crafted PDF may lead to arbitrary code execution. Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited.
Description: An integer overflow was addressed with improved input validation.
CVE-2021-30860: The Citizen Lab
WebKit
Available for: iPhone 6s and later, iPad Pro (all models), iPad Air 2 and later, iPad 5th generation and later, iPad mini 4 and later, and iPod touch (7th generation)
Impact: Processing maliciously crafted web content may lead to arbitrary code execution. Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited.
Description: A use after free issue was addressed with improved memory management.
CVE-2021-30858: an anonymous researcher
From a security perspective fixing vulnerabilities is always the priority.
As normal, Apple did not share details on the in-the-wild attacks or the profile of the targets. The company did not release any indicators of compromise or any additional data to help defenders hunt for signs of infections.
iOS 14.8 is available as a free software update starting today for iPhone 6s and later. If you don’t receive an automatic update notification, you can trigger the update manually by navigating to Settings > General > Software Update.
