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SafariWeb browser · Apple

CVE-2012-3615

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2012-07-25
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 5.1.7 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
WebKit, as used in Apple Safari before 6.0, allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption and application crash) via a crafted web site, a different vulnerability than other WebKit CVEs listed in APPLE-SA-2012-07-25-1.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

Memory corruption vulnerability in WebKit's rendering engine, as used in Apple Safari before version 6.0, allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service via a crafted website. This is a client-side code execution flaw with high severity (CVSS 9.3).

MitigationUpgrade Apple Safari to version 6.0 or later to remediate this vulnerability. Organizations should deploy the update to all affected endpoints and verify successful installation.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
SafariWeb browser
Affected:<= 5.1.7= 1.0= 1.0.0= 1.0.0b1= 1.0.0b2= 1.0.1= 1.0.2= 1.0.3= 1.0b1= 1.1= 1.1.0= 1.1.1

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Network
Complexity
M
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check installed Safari version on the system
    On Mac: Open Safari, click Safari menu > About Safari. On Windows: Open Safari, click Help > About Safari. Note the full version number displayed.
    Affected if The displayed version is 5.1.7 or lower, or exactly matches one of these: 1.0, 1.0.0, 1.0.0b1, 1.0.0b2, 1.0.1, 1.0.2, 1.0.3, 1.0b1, 1.1, 1.1.0, or 1.1.1
  2. Confirm WebKit-based Safari is the browser in use
    Verify that the browser being used is Apple Safari and not a third-party browser that also uses WebKit (such as Chrome or Chromium-based browsers).
    Affected if The browser is Apple Safari and the version from step 1 is within the affected range
  3. Determine if JavaScript execution is permitted
    In Safari, go to Safari > Preferences > Security (or on Windows: Tools > Options > Security). Check whether 'Enable JavaScript' is checked or enabled.
    Affected if JavaScript is enabled AND the Safari version is in the affected list - the exploit is delivered through malicious JavaScript on a crafted webpage

The system is affected if Apple Safari is installed with a version <= 5.1.7 or matching any of the specific old versions listed, and the user could be compromised by visiting a malicious website that triggers the WebKit memory corruption flaw.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 5.1.7
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Apple Safari to version 6.0 or later to remediate this vulnerability. Organizations should deploy the update to all affected endpoints and verify successful installation.

Recommended fix High confidence

Safari 6.0 or later (shipped with OS X Mountain Lion 10.8)

  1. 1. Open the Apple menu and select 'Software Update' to check for available Safari updates
  2. 2. If using OS X Mountain Lion (10.8) or later, update to Safari 6.0 or later which contains the security fix
  3. 3. For older macOS versions that cannot run Safari 6.0, consider upgrading the operating system to a version that supports Safari 6.0 or later
  4. 4. Verify the Safari version by selecting 'Safari' > 'About Safari' to confirm the update was applied
Caveat Safari 6.0 requires OS X Mountain Lion (10.8) or later; older macOS versions will need to upgrade the operating system to receive the security fix

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Safari Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
18.0 hours of engineering $3,200
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2012-3615 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data