dbcve.org
IpadosOperating system · Apple

CVE-2023-23503

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-02-27
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 9.3 / 13.2 or later.
See remediation →
58/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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 logic issue was addressed with improved state management. This issue is fixed in macOS Ventura 13.2, iOS 16.3 and iPadOS 16.3, iOS 15.7.3 and iPadOS 15.7.3, tvOS 16.3, watchOS 9.3. An app may be able to bypass Privacy preferences.

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 · moderate confidence

A logic flaw in Apple's privacy framework allows a malicious application to bypass user-defined Privacy preferences, potentially gaining unauthorized access to sensitive features such as contacts, photos, location, or microphone without proper authorization prompts.

MitigationApply vendor-supplied patches by updating to iOS 15.7.3/16.3+, iPadOS 15.7.3/16.3+, macOS Ventura 13.2+, tvOS 16.3+, or watchOS 9.3+. For internal applications, audit any code that interacts with privacy-sensitive APIs to ensure proper authorization checks are enforced regardless of system state.

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:< 15.7.3>= 16.0, < 16.3
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:< 15.7.3>= 16.0, < 16.3
macOSOperating system
Affected:< 13.2
TvosOperating system
Affected:< 16.3
WatchosOperating system
Affected:< 9.3

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
None
Integrity
High
Availability
None

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

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify your Apple device type
    Determine whether the device is an iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, or Apple Watch. This determines which version check to apply.
    Affected if Device is any Apple product running the affected OS versions
  2. Check iOS or iPadOS version on iPhone/iPad
    On the device, go to Settings > General > About and note the Version number. Compare it to the affected ranges: < 15.7.3, or >= 16.0 and < 16.3.
    Affected if iOS version is 15.7.2 or earlier, OR between 16.0 and 16.2 inclusive
  3. Check macOS version on Mac
    Click the Apple menu > About This Mac. Note the version number under macOS. Compare to affected range: < 13.2.
    Affected if macOS version is 13.1 or earlier (pre-Ventura 13.2)
  4. Check tvOS version on Apple TV
    Go to Settings > General > About > Version on the Apple TV. Compare to affected range: < 16.3.
    Affected if tvOS version is 16.2 or earlier
  5. Check watchOS version on Apple Watch
    On the paired iPhone, open the Watch app > My Watch > General > About. Note the watchOS version. Compare to affected range: < 9.3.
    Affected if watchOS version is 9.2 or earlier

You are affected if your device runs an OS version that falls within any of the listed vulnerable ranges: iOS/iPadOS < 15.7.3 or 16.0-16.2, macOS < 13.2, tvOS < 16.3, or watchOS < 9.3.

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 9.3 / 13.2 / 15.7.3 or later
Fixed in 9.313.215.7.3
Interim mitigation

Apply vendor-supplied patches by updating to iOS 15.7.3/16.3+, iPadOS 15.7.3/16.3+, macOS Ventura 13.2+, tvOS 16.3+, or watchOS 9.3+. For internal applications, audit any code that interacts with privacy-sensitive APIs to ensure proper authorization checks are enforced regardless of system state.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS 15.7.3/16.3+, iPadOS 15.7.3/16.3+, macOS Ventura 13.2+, tvOS 16.3+, watchOS 9.3+

  1. Identify the affected device type (iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, or Apple Watch)
  2. Determine the current installed OS version from the device Settings > General > About
  3. For iPhone/iPad: Upgrade to iOS/iPadOS 15.7.3 or iOS/iPadOS 16.3 or later
  4. For Mac: Upgrade to macOS Ventura 13.2 or later
  5. For Apple TV: Upgrade to tvOS 16.3 or later
  6. For Apple Watch: Upgrade to watchOS 9.3 or later
  7. Install the update via Settings > General > Software Update (iOS/iPadOS/watchOS) or System Preferences > Software Update (macOS)
  8. Restart the device after installing the update
Caveat Standard OS update risks apply - ensure backups exist before updating; some older applications may become incompatible

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

Fix this in Ipados Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.

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-2023-23503 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