CVE-2020-9844Public exploit

Kernel crash via AWDL BSS Steering double free

Published Jun 9, 2020 · Updated Aug 4, 2024

A Wi-Fi double free in Apple iOS before 13.5 and macOS Catalina before 10.15.5 allows remote attackers to crash or corrupt the kernel. IO80211AWDLPeer::populateBssSteeringMsgBlob frees steering_msg_blob after an addPeerToUmiChain failure but leaves the pointer live, so peer destruction frees the same allocation again. Radio proximity is required, but authentication and user interaction are not; a successful trigger causes a kernel panic or kernel-memory corruption.

CVSS severity7.5
High
EPSS probability1.77%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

A Wi-Fi double free in Apple iOS before 13.5 and macOS Catalina before 10.15.5 allows remote attackers to crash or corrupt the kernel. IO80211AWDLPeer::populateBssSteeringMsgBlob frees steering_msg_blob after an addPeerToUmiChain failure but leaves the pointer live, so peer destruction frees the same allocation again. Radio proximity is required, but authentication and user interaction are not; a successful trigger causes a kernel panic or kernel-memory corruption.

The record

CVE
CVE-2020-9844
Published
Jun 9, 2020
Updated
Aug 4, 2024
Vendor
Apple
Product
iOS
Classifications
CWE-415, T1499
Attack vector
adjacent
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Jun 9, 2020CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 4, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=unspecified <iOS 13.5 and iPadOS 13.5

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectoradjacent
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

Apple · iOSversion=unspecified <iOS 13.5 and iPadOS 13.5
Apple · macOSversion=unspecified <macOS Catalina 10.15.5

Published CVSS scores

7.5NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
7.8NIST NVDAV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:N/A:C

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

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No observations available

Sep 9, 2026Sep 15, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 15, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectoradjacent
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-415Double Free
T1499Endpoint Denial of Service

Public exploit references

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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