dbcve.org
SafariWeb browser · Apple

CVE-2022-42863

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-12-15
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 9.2 / 13.1 or later.
See remediation →
95/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable 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 Safari 16.2, tvOS 16.2, macOS Ventura 13.1, iOS 16.2 and iPadOS 16.2, watchOS 9.2. Processing maliciously crafted web content may lead to arbitrary code execution.

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

Memory corruption vulnerability in WebKit (Apple's browser engine) that was addressed with improved state management. Processing maliciously crafted web content could lead to arbitrary code execution due to improper memory handling.

MitigationUpdate affected Apple products (iOS 16.2+, iPadOS 16.2+, macOS Ventura 13.1+, Safari 16.2+, tvOS 16.2+, watchOS 9.2+) to patched versions. Avoid untrusted websites until updates 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
SafariWeb browser
Affected:< 16.2
IpadosOperating system
Affected:< 16.2
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:< 16.2
macOSOperating system
Affected:< 13.1
TvosOperating system
Affected:< 16.2
WatchosOperating system
Affected:< 9.2

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

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/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. Identify installed Apple products
    Check which Apple software uses WebKit: Safari (macOS/iOS/iPadOS), iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, or watchOS. On macOS, open System Settings > General > About. On iOS/iPadOS, go to Settings > General > About. For tvOS/watchOS, check Settings > General > About.
    Affected if Any of Safari, iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, or watchOS is installed on the device
  2. Get Safari version
    Open Safari > Safari menu > About Safari (macOS) or Settings > Safari > About (iOS/iPadOS). Note the version number displayed.
    Affected if Safari version is earlier than 16.2 on any platform
  3. Get iOS or iPadOS version
    Open Settings > General > About on iPhone or iPad. Note the iOS/iPadOS version number shown next to 'Version'.
    Affected if iOS version is earlier than 16.2 or iPadOS version is earlier than 16.2
  4. Get macOS version
    Click Apple menu > About This Mac. Note the macOS version number (for example, 13.0, 12.x, etc.) displayed under the operating system name.
    Affected if macOS version is earlier than 13.1 (Ventura)
  5. Get tvOS or watchOS version
    On Apple TV, go to Settings > General > About > Version. On Apple Watch, open the Watch app on iPhone > General > About > watchOS Version.
    Affected if tvOS version is earlier than 16.2 or watchOS version is earlier than 9.2

If any installed Apple product (Safari, iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, or watchOS) has a version number below the respective threshold (Safari 16.2, iOS/iPadOS 16.2, macOS 13.1, tvOS 16.2, watchOS 9.2), the environment is affected by this 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 9.2 / 13.1 / 16.2 or later
Fixed in 9.213.116.2
Interim mitigation

Update affected Apple products (iOS 16.2+, iPadOS 16.2+, macOS Ventura 13.1+, Safari 16.2+, tvOS 16.2+, watchOS 9.2+) to patched versions. Avoid untrusted websites until updates are applied.

Recommended fix High confidence

Safari 16.2, iOS 16.2, iPadOS 16.2, macOS Ventura 13.1, tvOS 16.2, watchOS 9.2

  1. Identify the affected Apple product (Safari, iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, or watchOS) from the device or system
  2. Check the current installed version of the product (e.g., Safari > About Safari, iOS > Settings > General > Software Update, macOS > System Preferences > Software Update)
  3. Apply the available security update: For iOS and iPadOS devices, update to iOS 16.2 or iPadOS 16.2 via Settings > General > Software Update
  4. For macOS systems, update to macOS Ventura 13.1 via System Settings > Software Update
  5. For Safari browser on macOS, update to Safari 16.2 through macOS software update
  6. For tvOS devices, update to tvOS 16.2 via Settings > General > Apple TV Software Update
  7. For Apple Watch, update to watchOS 9.2 via the Watch app on iPhone > General > Software Update
  8. After updating, verify the version number matches the fixed release to confirm remediation
Caveat Security updates typically have minimal compatibility impact; however, some legacy web features or older website functionality may behave differently in updated WebKit rendering engine

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

Fix this in Safari Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,970
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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-2022-42863 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