CVE-2023-42846
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 · uneditedThis issue was addressed by removing the vulnerable code. This issue is fixed in watchOS 10.1, iOS 16.7.2 and iPadOS 16.7.2, tvOS 17.1, iOS 17.1 and iPadOS 17.1. A device may be passively tracked by its Wi-Fi MAC address.
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 confidenceA vulnerability in Apple's mobile operating systems allowed devices to be passively tracked via their Wi-Fi MAC address, which is a unique hardware identifier that can be observed by nearby devices even without network association. The vulnerable code was removed in the specified updates, preventing the exposure of this persistent identifier.
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< 16.7.2>= 17.0, < 17.1< 16.7.2>= 17.0, < 17.1< 17.1< 10.1CVSS 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
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Check iOS version on iPhonesOn the iPhone, go to Settings > General > About and note the version number shown next to 'Version'Affected if The version is below 16.7.2, or is 17.0, 17.0.1, or 17.0.2 through 17.0.x (any 17.0.x less than 17.1)
-
Check iPadOS version on iPadsOn the iPad, go to Settings > General > About and note the version number shown next to 'Version'Affected if The version is below 16.7.2, or is 17.0, 17.0.1, or 17.0.2 through 17.0.x (any 17.0.x less than 17.1)
-
Check tvOS version on Apple TVOn Apple TV, go to Settings > General > About and note the version number shown next to 'Version'Affected if The version is below 17.1
-
Check watchOS version on Apple WatchOn the Apple Watch, go to Settings > General > About and note the version number; alternatively, open the Watch app on the paired iPhone and go to General > About to see the watchOS versionAffected if The version is below 10.1
A device is affected if it runs any iOS/iPadOS version below 16.7.2, any 17.0.x version below 17.1, any tvOS version below 17.1, or any watchOS version below 10.1.
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 · scoped10.116.7.217.1
Update affected devices to iOS 16.7.2/17.1, iPadOS 16.7.2/17.1, watchOS 10.1, or tvOS 17.1 as appropriate. This is a standard OS patch deployment.
iOS 16.7.2 or iOS 17.1+; iPadOS 16.7.2 or iPadOS 17.1+; tvOS 17.1+; watchOS 10.1+
- For iPhone: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and upgrade to iOS 16.7.2 or iOS 17.1 and later
- For iPad: Go to Settings > General > Software Update and upgrade to iPadOS 16.7.2 or iPadOS 17.1 and later
- For Apple TV: Go to Settings > System > Software Updates and upgrade to tvOS 17.1 or later
- For Apple Watch: Go to the Watch app on iPhone > My Watch > General > Software Update and upgrade to watchOS 10.1 or later
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,424.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-42846 — 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-2023-42846 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