CVE-2022-43543
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 · uneditedKDDI +Message App, NTT DOCOMO +Message App, and SoftBank +Message App contain a vulnerability caused by improper handling of Unicode control characters. +Message App displays text unprocessed, even when control characters are contained, and the text is shown based on Unicode control character's specifications. Therefore, a crafted text may display misleading web links. As a result, a spoofed URL may be displayed and phishing attacks may be conducted. Affected products and versions are as follows: KDDI +Message App for Android prior to version 3.9.2 and +Message App for iOS prior to version 3.9.4, NTT DOCOMO +Message App for Android prior to version 54.49.0500 and +Message App for iOS prior to version 3.9.4, and SoftBank +Message App for Android prior to version 12.9.5 and +Message App for iOS prior to version 3.9.4
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 confidenceThe +Message apps (KDDI, NTT DOCOMO, SoftBank) improperly handle Unicode control characters in messages, displaying text unprocessed rather than sanitizing or stripping these characters. Attackers can embed invisible Unicode control sequences to manipulate how URLs are rendered, causing misleading or spoofed links to appear as legitimate destinations.
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< 3.9.4< 54.49.0500< 3.9.2< 3.9.4< 3.9.4< 12.9.5CVSS 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
- Low
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:L/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Identify which +Message app is installedGo to Settings > Apps on your Android device and look for +Message apps from Japanese carriers. Check for app names containing '+Message' from DOCOMO, KDDI, or SoftBank.Affected if Any +Message app from DOCOMO, KDDI, or SoftBank is installed
-
Check the installed version of the +Message appIn Settings > Apps, tap on the +Message app, then look at the Version or App version field shown in the app information screen.Affected if The version displayed is lower than the affected ranges for that specific carrier
-
Verify Unicode handling behavior (optional confirmation)Receive a test message containing Unicode control characters (such as right-to-left override \u202E or other invisible control codes) and observe whether the message displays these characters literally or processes them. If characters appear raw/visible when they should be hidden or stripped, the vulnerability may still be present.Affected if Unicode control characters in messages appear unprocessed rather than being sanitized or stripped before display
You are affected if you have a DOCOMO, KDDI, or SoftBank +Message app with a version number lower than 3.9.4 (or the carrier-specific threshold) and the app displays Unicode control characters in messages without sanitization.
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 · scoped3.9.23.9.412.9.5
Update +Message apps to version 3.9.2 or later (KDDI Android), 3.9.4 or later (iOS all carriers), 54.49.0500 or later (NTT DOCOMO Android), or 12.9.5 or later (SoftBank Android). The fix requires implementing proper input sanitization to strip or neutralize Unicode control characters before display.
KDDI: Android 3.9.2+, iOS 3.9.4+ | NTT DOCOMO: Android 54.49.0500+, iOS 3.9.4+ | SoftBank: Android 12.9.5+, iOS 3.9.4+
- Open Google Play Store (Android) or App Store (iOS) on your device
- Search for "+Message" in the store
- Check the app version before updating - confirm you have a version below the fixed release for your carrier
- For KDDI +Message users: Upgrade to version 3.9.2 or later on Android, or version 3.9.4 or later on iOS
- For NTT DOCOMO +Message users: Upgrade to version 54.49.0500 or later on Android, or version 3.9.4 or later on iOS
- For SoftBank +Message users: Upgrade to version 12.9.5 or later on Android, or version 3.9.4 or later on iOS
- After upgrading, verify the app displays text properly and that Unicode control characters are no longer rendered unprocessed
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,888.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-43543 — 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-2022-43543 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
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.
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.
- 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