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IpadosOperating system · Apple

CVE-2023-23537

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-05-08
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 9.4 / 11.7.5 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 privacy issue was addressed with improved private data redaction for log entries. This issue is fixed in macOS Ventura 13.3, iOS 16.4 and iPadOS 16.4, iOS 15.7.4 and iPadOS 15.7.4, watchOS 9.4, macOS Big Sur 11.7.5. An app may be able to read sensitive location information.

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

This vulnerability involves improper redaction of sensitive location information in system logs. An application could potentially read sensitive location data that should have been redacted from log entries, exposing user location data through log files.

MitigationApply the available OS updates for affected platforms: iOS 15.7.4/16.4, iPadOS 15.7.4/16.4, macOS Ventura 13.3, macOS Big Sur 11.7.5, and watchOS 9.4 which contain the fix for proper private data redaction in logs.

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:< 15.7.4>= 16.0, < 16.4
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:< 15.7.4>= 16.0, < 16.4
macOSOperating system
Affected:< 11.7.5>= 13.0, < 13.3
WatchosOperating system
Affected:< 9.4

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
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/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. Check iOS version on iPhone
    On the iPhone, go to Settings > General > About and note the version number displayed next to 'Version'
    Affected if The version is lower than 15.7.4, or is 16.0 through 16.3 (16.0 <= version < 16.4)
  2. Check iPadOS version on iPad
    On the iPad, go to Settings > General > About and note the version number displayed next to 'Version'
    Affected if The version is lower than 15.7.4, or is 16.0 through 16.3 (16.0 <= version < 16.4)
  3. Check macOS version on Mac
    On Mac, click the Apple menu > About This Mac and note the macOS version shown (such as Ventura 13.x or Big Sur 11.x)
    Affected if The version is lower than 11.7.5, or is 13.0 through 13.2 (13.0 <= version < 13.3)
  4. Check watchOS version on Apple Watch
    Open the Watch app on paired iPhone, go to My Watch > General > About, or on the Watch itself go to Settings > General > About, and note the watchOS version
    Affected if The version is lower than 9.4

Your device is affected if its operating system version falls within any of the vulnerable ranges: iOS/iPadOS < 15.7.4 or 16.0-16.3, macOS < 11.7.5 or 13.0-13.2, or watchOS < 9.4

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 9.4 / 11.7.5 / 13.3 or later
Fixed in 9.411.7.513.3
Interim mitigation

Apply the available OS updates for affected platforms: iOS 15.7.4/16.4, iPadOS 15.7.4/16.4, macOS Ventura 13.3, macOS Big Sur 11.7.5, and watchOS 9.4 which contain the fix for proper private data redaction in logs.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS 15.7.4 / iOS 16.4 / iPadOS 15.7.4 / iPadOS 16.4 / macOS Big Sur 11.7.5 / macOS Ventura 13.3 / watchOS 9.4 (depending on your device)

  1. For iPhone/iPad: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and upgrade to iOS/iPadOS 15.7.4 or iOS/iPadOS 16.4 (depending on your target version)
  2. For Mac: Go to System Settings > General > Software Update and upgrade to macOS Big Sur 11.7.5 or macOS Ventura 13.3
  3. For Apple Watch: On your iPhone, open the Watch app, go to My Watch > General > Software Update and upgrade to watchOS 9.4
  4. Alternatively, you can update via iTunes/Finder by connecting your device and selecting the update option
Caveat Standard Apple minor updates typically have minimal breaking changes; however, some legacy apps may have compatibility issues with newer OS versions

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

Fix this in Ipados Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
16.0 hours of engineering $2,800
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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-2023-23537 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