CVE-2012-3688
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 · uneditedWebKit, as used in Apple iTunes before 10.7, 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-2012-09-12-1.
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 · moderate confidenceMemory corruption vulnerability in WebKit rendering engine, as used in Apple iTunes versions prior to 10.7, allows remote attackers to achieve arbitrary code execution or cause a denial of service via a crafted malicious website that triggers memory corruption during page rendering.
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<= 10.6.3= 4.0.0= 4.0.1= 4.1.0= 4.2.0= 4.5= 4.5.0= 4.6= 4.6.0= 4.7= 4.7.0= 4.7.1CVSS 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
- Partial
- Integrity
- Partial
- Availability
- Partial
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P
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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check if iTunes is installedOn Windows, look for iTunes in 'Program Files' folder or check Registry key HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\App Paths\iTunes.exe. On Mac, check /Applications folder for iTunes.app.Affected if iTunes is found on the system
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Determine installed iTunes versionWindows: Right-click iTunes.exe, select Properties, view Version tab. Or run 'iTunes.exe /65001 2' from command line or check Registry: HKLM\SOFTWARE\Apple Computer, Inc.\iTunes\Version. Mac: Right-click iTunes.app, Get Info, or run 'defaults read /Applications/iTunes.app/Contents/Info CFBundleShortVersionString' in Terminal.Affected if Unable to determine version - further manual investigation needed
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Compare version against affected listCheck if the installed version matches: any version <= 10.6.3, OR exactly 4.0.0, 4.0.1, 4.1.0, 4.2.0, 4.5, 4.5.0, 4.6, 4.6.0, 4.7, 4.7.0, or 4.7.1.Affected if Installed version is <= 10.6.3 OR equals one of: 4.0.0, 4.0.1, 4.1.0, 4.2.0, 4.5, 4.5.0, 4.6, 4.6.0, 4.7, 4.7.0, 4.7.1
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Confirm WebKit usage contextThe vulnerability triggers when iTunes renders web content via its WebKit component, such as when browsing the iTunes Store or viewing web content through iTunes. Verify if iTunes is used for web browsing or store access.Affected if User uses iTunes to browse web content or iTunes Store
User is affected if iTunes version is <= 10.6.3 or one of the specific older versions (4.0.0 through 4.7.1), and the iTunes WebKit component is used to render untrusted web content.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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.
From vendor dataUpdate Apple iTunes to version 10.7 or later which includes the patched WebKit component; avoid browsing untrusted websites as the attack vector requires user visit to a malicious page.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2012-3688 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2012-3688 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- 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
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