dbcve.org
Iphone OsOperating system · Apple

CVE-2016-4679

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-02-20
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 3.1 / 10.0.1 or later.
See remediation →
58/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
No privileges

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
An issue was discovered in certain Apple products. iOS before 10.1 is affected. macOS before 10.12.1 is affected. tvOS before 10.0.1 is affected. watchOS before 3.1 is affected. The issue involves the "libarchive" component, which allows remote attackers to write to arbitrary files via a crafted archive containing a symlink.

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

The libarchive component in Apple's iOS, macOS, tvOS, and watchOS contains a symlink attack vulnerability allowing remote attackers to write to arbitrary files. By crafting a malicious archive containing symlinks that point to paths outside the intended extraction directory, an attacker can overwrite system files when the archive is extracted.

MitigationApply vendor-supplied patches by updating to iOS 10.1+, macOS 10.12.1+, tvOS 10.0.1+, or watchOS 3.1+. Additionally, avoid extracting untrusted archive files from unknown sources until patches are applied.

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
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:< 10.1
Mac Os XOperating system
Affected:< 10.12.1
TvosOperating system
Affected:< 10.0.1
WatchosOperating system
Affected:< 3.1

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
High
Availability
None

CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N

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. Identify the device operating system
    On iOS: Settings > General > About > Version. On macOS: Apple menu > About This Mac. On tvOS: Settings > General > About > Version. On watchOS: Open Watch app on paired iPhone, go to General > About.
    Affected if The OS version displayed is below 10.1 (iOS), 10.12.1 (macOS), 10.0.1 (tvOS), or 3.1 (watchOS)
  2. Confirm libarchive usage context
    Determine if any applications on the device are used to extract archive files (ZIP, tar, 7z, rar, etc.) from external or untrusted sources. Common apps include file managers, email clients, messaging apps, and browsers that handle attachments or downloads.
    Affected if The device runs a vulnerable OS version and has applications capable of extracting archive files
  3. Verify extraction of untrusted archives
    Review recent activity for extraction of archive files from unknown or untrusted sources, such as email attachments from unknown senders, downloaded files from untrusted websites, or archive files received via messaging apps.
    Affected if The device runs a vulnerable OS version and has extracted archive files from untrusted or unknown sources
  4. Check for system file modifications
    After extracting any untrusted archive on a vulnerable system, examine the extraction destination directory and surrounding system directories for any unexpected new files or modified symlinks pointing outside the intended directory.
    Affected if The device runs a vulnerable OS version, untrusted archives were extracted, and files exist outside the intended extraction directory

The device is affected if it runs iOS < 10.1, macOS < 10.12.1, tvOS < 10.0.1, or watchOS < 3.1 and has extracted archive files from untrusted sources using any application that leverages the libarchive component.

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.

From vendor data
Upgrade available Upgrade to 3.1 / 10.0.1 / 10.1 or later
Fixed in 3.110.0.110.1
Interim mitigation

Apply vendor-supplied patches by updating to iOS 10.1+, macOS 10.12.1+, tvOS 10.0.1+, or watchOS 3.1+. Additionally, avoid extracting untrusted archive files from unknown sources until patches are applied.

Fix this in Iphone Os Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,120
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,392.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2016-4679 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2016-4679 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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