dbcve.org
IpadosOperating system · Apple

CVE-2022-32944

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-11-01
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 9.1 / 11.7.1 or later.
See remediation →
81/100
Remediation priority · High
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
A memory corruption issue was addressed with improved state management. This issue is fixed in tvOS 16.1, iOS 15.7.1 and iPadOS 15.7.1, macOS Ventura 13, watchOS 9.1, iOS 16.1 and iPadOS 16, macOS Monterey 12.6.1, macOS Big Sur 11.7.1. An app may be able to execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges.

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

A memory corruption vulnerability in the kernel allows a malicious application to escalate privileges and execute arbitrary code with kernel-level access. The issue was addressed through improved state management in the affected Apple operating systems.

MitigationApply the security updates: tvOS 16.1, iOS 15.7.1/16.1, iPadOS 15.7.1/16.1, macOS Ventura 13, macOS Monterey 12.6.1, macOS Big Sur 11.7.1, or watchOS 9.1 depending on the device. Prioritize updating devices that run untrusted third-party applications.

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
IpadosOperating system
Affected:< 15.7.1
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:< 15.7.1
macOSOperating system
Affected:>= 11.0, < 11.7.1>= 12.0.0, < 12.6.1
TvosOperating system
Affected:< 16.1
WatchosOperating system
Affected:< 9.1

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
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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 or iPadOS version
    On the device, go to Settings > General > About and note the version number. Alternatively, connect to a computer with Apple Configurator or use an MDM solution to query the device OS version.
    Affected if The version is below 15.7.1 or 16.1 (if a 16.x version is available for that device)
  2. Check macOS version
    Click the Apple menu and select About This Mac, or run 'sw_vers' in Terminal. Note the major version (e.g., 11.x, 12.x) and the specific build version.
    Affected if The version is 11.x and below 11.7.1, or 12.x and below 12.6.1
  3. Check tvOS version
    On Apple TV, go to Settings > General > About and note the tvOS version number.
    Affected if The version is below 16.1
  4. Check watchOS version
    Open the Watch app on the paired iPhone, go to General > About, or on Apple Watch go to Settings > About. Note the watchOS version.
    Affected if The version is below 9.1

If the installed operating system version falls below the fixed release for that platform (iOS/iPadOS 15.7.1, macOS 11.7.1 or 12.6.1, tvOS 16.1, or watchOS 9.1), the device is affected by this kernel privilege escalation vulnerability.

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 9.1 / 11.7.1 / 12.6.1 or later
Fixed in 9.111.7.112.6.1
Interim mitigation

Apply the security updates: tvOS 16.1, iOS 15.7.1/16.1, iPadOS 15.7.1/16.1, macOS Ventura 13, macOS Monterey 12.6.1, macOS Big Sur 11.7.1, or watchOS 9.1 depending on the device. Prioritize updating devices that run untrusted third-party applications.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS/iPadOS 15.7.1 (or 16.1+); macOS Big Sur 11.7.1 / Monterey 12.6.1 / Ventura 13; tvOS 16.1; watchOS 9.1

  1. For iPhone/iPad: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install iOS 15.7.1 (or iOS 16.1/iPadOS 16 for additional features)
  2. For macOS Big Sur (11.x): Go to System Preferences > Software Update and install macOS 11.7.1
  3. For macOS Monterey (12.x): Go to System Preferences > Software Update and install macOS 12.6.1
  4. For macOS Ventura (13.x): Go to System Settings > General > Software Update and install the latest security update
  5. For tvOS: Go to Settings > System > Software Updates and install tvOS 16.1
  6. For watchOS: On iPhone, open Watch app, go to My Watch > General > Software Update and install watchOS 9.1
  7. After updating, verify the update was successful by checking the OS version in Settings
Caveat Major OS version upgrades (e.g., to macOS Ventura or iOS 16) may introduce app compatibility issues or UI changes; point releases (15.7.1, 12.6.1, etc.) are generally safer with minimal breaking changes

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

Fix this in Ipados Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,490
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Scan for this in your stack

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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-2022-32944 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