dbcve.org
IpadosOperating system · Apple

CVE-2023-40412

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-09-27
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 10.0 / 12.7 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
The issue was addressed with improved memory handling. This issue is fixed in macOS Ventura 13.6, tvOS 17, macOS Monterey 12.7, watchOS 10, iOS 17 and iPadOS 17. 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 · moderate confidence

A memory handling vulnerability in the kernel allows a malicious application to escalate privileges and execute arbitrary code with kernel-level privileges. This is a local privilege escalation vector requiring an attacker to first run code on the target system.

MitigationApply the Apple security updates for the relevant operating system version (macOS Ventura 13.6, tvOS 17, macOS Monterey 12.7, watchOS 10, iOS 17, or iPadOS 17) to patch the kernel memory handling flaw.

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:< 17.0
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:< 17.0
macOSOperating system
Affected:>= 12.0.0, < 12.7>= 13.0, < 13.6
TvosOperating system
Affected:< 17.0
WatchosOperating system
Affected:< 10.0

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. Identify the installed Apple operating system
    Run 'sw_vers' on macOS, or check Settings > General > About on iOS/iPadOS/tvOS/watchOS to obtain the exact version number
    Affected if The OS is any of: iPadOS, iPhone OS, macOS, tvOS, or watchOS with a version lower than the patched releases
  2. Check if running a vulnerable macOS version
    On macOS, run 'sw_vers -productVersion' and compare the output against the ranges 12.0.0 to 12.6.x (before 12.7) or 13.0 to 13.5.x (before 13.6)
    Affected if The macOS version falls within 12.0.0 to 12.6.x or 13.0 to 13.5.x
  3. Check if running a vulnerable iOS or iPadOS version
    On iOS/iPadOS, go to Settings > General > Software Update or check the version number directly; compare against versions prior to 17.0
    Affected if The iOS or iPadOS version is below 17.0 (e.g., 16.x, 15.x, etc.)
  4. Check if running a vulnerable tvOS or watchOS version
    Check the tvOS version via Settings > General > About > Version, or watchOS via Settings > General > About on the paired iPhone; compare against versions prior to 17.0 for tvOS and prior to 10.0 for watchOS
    Affected if The tvOS version is below 17.0 or the watchOS version is below 10.0
  5. Confirm the vulnerability is kernel-level and locally exploitable
    This is a kernel memory handling flaw; no specific kernel extension, configuration toggle, or service needs to be enabled - any unpatched system running a vulnerable OS version is potentially affected
    Affected if The system is running an unpatched OS version within any of the affected ranges listed above

A system is affected if it is running any unpatched version of iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, or watchOS that falls within the vulnerable version ranges (iOS/iPadOS/tvOS/watchOS below 17.0 or 10.0 respectively, macOS 12.0.0-12.6.x or 13.0-13.5.x).

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 10.0 / 12.7 / 13.6 or later
Fixed in 10.012.713.6
Interim mitigation

Apply the Apple security updates for the relevant operating system version (macOS Ventura 13.6, tvOS 17, macOS Monterey 12.7, watchOS 10, iOS 17, or iPadOS 17) to patch the kernel memory handling flaw.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS 17, iPadOS 17, tvOS 17, watchOS 10, macOS Monterey 12.7, macOS Ventura 13.6

  1. For iOS devices: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install iOS 17
  2. For iPadOS devices: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install iPadOS 17
  3. For macOS Monterey (12.x) users: Go to System Settings > General > Software Update and install macOS Monterey 12.7
  4. For macOS Ventura (13.x) users: Go to System Settings > General > Software Update and install macOS Ventura 13.6
  5. For tvOS devices: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and install tvOS 17
  6. For Apple Watch: On iPhone, open the Watch app > General > Software Update and install watchOS 10
  7. After updating, restart the device to ensure the kernel patch is fully applied
Caveat Apple major updates may deprecate older applications; verify critical apps are compatible before upgrading

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
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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-2023-40412 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