CVE-2022-42858
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 · uneditedA memory corruption issue was addressed with improved input validation. This issue is fixed in macOS Ventura 13.1. 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 confidenceA memory corruption vulnerability in macOS Ventura 13.1 allows a malicious application to escalate privileges and execute arbitrary code with kernel-level privileges. The vulnerability stemmed from insufficient input validation in a kernel component, which could be exploited by a local attacker to achieve code execution at the highest privilege level.
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< 13.1CVSS 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
- 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check installed macOS versionOpen Terminal and run: sw_vers -productVersionAffected if The version displayed is less than 13.1 (for example, 13.0, 12.x, 11.x, etc.)
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Verify macOS Ventura editionRun: uname -r and check if the kernel version corresponds to Ventura. Alternatively, check System Settings > About This Mac to confirm the macOS name is Ventura and the version number.Affected if The system is running macOS Ventura but the version is below 13.1
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Confirm kernel patch statusRun: system_profiler SPSoftwareDataType | grep 'System Version' to retrieve detailed version information including the build number.Affected if The build number is older than the 13.1 security update build
The system is affected if it runs any version of macOS Ventura prior to 13.1, as the memory corruption vulnerability in the kernel component requires no additional configuration to be exploitable by a local attacker.
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.
dbcve · scoped13.1
Apply the macOS Ventura 13.1 or later security update to affected systems. Since this is a kernel-level privilege escalation, ensure all endpoints are patched promptly as the impact allows complete system compromise.
macOS Ventura 13.1 or later
- Back up important data before initiating the OS upgrade
- Open System Preferences (macOS Ventura and later) or System Settings
- Click on 'Software Update' or navigate to General > Software Update
- Allow the system to check for available updates
- If macOS Ventura 13.1 or later is available, click 'Download and Install'
- Follow the on-screen prompts to complete the installation
- Restart the system when prompted to apply the security update
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-42858 — 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-2022-42858 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data