dbcve.org
Iphone OsOperating system · Apple

CVE-2016-4685

MEDIUM · 5.9 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-02-20
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 10.0.3 or later.
See remediation →
68/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
An issue was discovered in certain Apple products. iOS before 10.1 is affected. The issue involves the "iTunes Backup" component, which improperly hashes passwords, making it easier to decrypt files.

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 confidence

The iTunes Backup component in iOS before 10.1 uses inadequate password hashing for backup encryption, weakening protection and making it easier for attackers to decrypt backup files containing sensitive user data.

MitigationUpdate affected iOS devices to version 10.1 or later, which implements proper password hashing for backup encryption.

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:<= 10.0.3

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
High
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/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. Check iOS version on the device
    Go to Settings > General > About > Version on the iOS device, or view the device info in iTunes or Xcode when the device is connected
    Affected if The version displayed is 10.0.3 or earlier (any version from 10.0 through 10.0.3)
  2. Confirm backup encryption is enabled
    Connect device to iTunes, select the device, go to Summary tab, and check if 'Encrypt iPhone backup' is checked under the Backup section
    Affected if Encrypted backups are enabled (the password hashing flaw only affects encrypted backups)
  3. Verify the backup exists
    Check the computer for existing iTunes backup folders: On Windows, typically in %APPDATA%\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup\; on macOS, typically in ~/Library/Application Support/MobileSync/Backup/
    Affected if An encrypted iTunes backup exists from a device running the affected iOS version

A user is affected if they have an iOS device running version 10.0.3 or earlier AND have encrypted iTunes backups stored on their computer.

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 a release after 10.0.3
Interim mitigation

Update affected iOS devices to version 10.1 or later, which implements proper password hashing for backup encryption.

Fix this in Iphone Os Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
4.0 hours of engineering $750
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,200.

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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-2016-4685 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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