dbcve.org
IpadosOperating system · Apple

CVE-2022-46690

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-12-15
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 9.2 / 13.1 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
An out-of-bounds write issue was addressed with improved input validation. This issue is fixed in iOS 16.2 and iPadOS 16.2, macOS Ventura 13.1, tvOS 16.2, watchOS 9.2. 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

An out-of-bounds write vulnerability in Apple kernel allows a malicious application to execute arbitrary code with kernel-level privileges. The vulnerability was addressed through improved input validation in the affected operating systems.

MitigationApply vendor patches by updating to iOS 16.2/iPadOS 16.2, macOS Ventura 13.1, tvOS 16.2, or watchOS 9.2 or later, depending on the affected platform.

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:< 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
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 > Version. Note the version number displayed.
    Affected if The version shown is earlier than 16.2 (for example, 16.1, 16.0, 15.x, etc.)
  2. Check macOS version
    Click the Apple menu in the top-left corner of the screen, then select About This Mac. Note the version number shown under the macOS name.
    Affected if The version shown is earlier than 13.1 (for example, 13.0, 12.x, 11.x, etc.)
  3. Check tvOS version
    On the Apple TV, go to Settings > General > About > Version. Note the version number displayed.
    Affected if The version shown is earlier than 16.2 (for example, 16.1, 16.0, 15.x, etc.)
  4. Check watchOS version
    On the paired iPhone, open the Watch app, go to General > About, and note the watchOS version shown for your Apple Watch.
    Affected if The version shown is earlier than 9.2 (for example, 9.1, 9.0, 8.x, etc.)

Your environment is affected if any Apple device (iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, or Apple Watch) runs an OS version lower than the threshold: iOS/iPadOS/tvOS/watchOS below 16.2, or macOS below 13.1.

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

Apply vendor patches by updating to iOS 16.2/iPadOS 16.2, macOS Ventura 13.1, tvOS 16.2, or watchOS 9.2 or later, depending on the affected platform.

Recommended fix High confidence

Upgrade to iOS 16.2/iPadOS 16.2, macOS Ventura 13.1, tvOS 16.2, or watchOS 9.2 depending on device type

  1. Identify the affected Apple device type (iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, or Apple Watch)
  2. For iPhone/iPad: Navigate to Settings > General > Software Update and upgrade to iOS 16.2 or iPadOS 16.2
  3. For Mac: Navigate to System Preferences > Software Update and upgrade to macOS Ventura 13.1
  4. For Apple TV: Go to Settings > System > Software Updates and upgrade to tvOS 16.2
  5. For Apple Watch: On the iPhone, open the Watch app, go to General > Software Update and upgrade to watchOS 9.2
  6. After upgrading, verify the device shows the target OS version in Settings > General > About
Caveat Standard OS upgrade considerations apply; review Apple release notes for any known issues or app compatibility concerns before proceeding

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

Fix this in Ipados Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,110
Get the upgrade done

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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-2022-46690 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