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Ipad OsOperating system · Apple

CVE-2023-42873

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-02-21
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 12.7.1 / 13.6.1 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
The issue was addressed with improved bounds checks. This issue is fixed in macOS Sonoma 14.1, tvOS 17.1, macOS Monterey 12.7.1, iOS 16.7.2 and iPadOS 16.7.2, iOS 17.1 and iPadOS 17.1, macOS Ventura 13.6.1. 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

A kernel-level vulnerability involving improper bounds checking that allows a malicious local application to escalate privileges to kernel execution context, potentially gaining full system control.

MitigationApply the relevant Apple security updates (macOS Sonoma 14.1, Ventura 13.6.1, Monterey 12.7.1, iOS/iPadOS 17.1 or 16.7.2, tvOS 17.1) to all affected devices.

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
Ipad OsOperating system
Affected:< 17.1>= 16.0, < 16.7.2
Iphone OsOperating system
Affected:< 17.1>= 16.0, < 16.7.2
macOSOperating system
Affected:>= 12.0, < 12.7.1>= 13.0, < 13.6.1= 14.0
TvosOperating system
Affected:< 17.1

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 macOS version on Apple computers
    Open Terminal and run: sw_vers -productVersion
    Affected if The version returned is 12.0 through 12.7.0, 13.0 through 13.6.0, or exactly 14.0 (all builds within these ranges are affected)
  2. Check iOS version on iPhones
    Go to Settings > General > About and note the version number, or run: idevicesysversion on a host machine with the device connected
    Affected if The version is 16.0 through 16.7.1, or any version below 17.1 that is not 16.x (16.7.2 and above are patched)
  3. Check iPadOS version on iPads
    Go to Settings > General > About and note the version number, or run: idevicesysversion on a host machine with the device connected
    Affected if The version is 16.0 through 16.7.1, or any version below 17.1 that is not 16.x (16.7.2 and above are patched)
  4. Check tvOS version on Apple TV devices
    Go to Settings > General > About > Version on the Apple TV interface
    Affected if The version is any build below 17.1 (all versions prior to tvOS 17.1 are affected)

If the device runs any macOS version 12.0-12.7.0, 13.0-13.6.0, or 14.0; iOS/iPadOS 16.0-16.7.1 or below 17.1; or tvOS below 17.1, then the environment is affected by this kernel privilege escalation vulnerability.

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 12.7.1 / 13.6.1 / 16.7.2 or later
Fixed in 12.7.113.6.116.7.2
Interim mitigation

Apply the relevant Apple security updates (macOS Sonoma 14.1, Ventura 13.6.1, Monterey 12.7.1, iOS/iPadOS 17.1 or 16.7.2, tvOS 17.1) to all affected devices.

Recommended fix High confidence

iOS 16.7.2 or iOS 17.1 / iPadOS 16.7.2 or iPadOS 17.1 / macOS 12.7.1, 13.6.1, or 14.1 / tvOS 17.1

  1. 1. Back up your device data using iCloud or Finder/iTunes
  2. 2. Connect your device to power and Wi-Fi
  3. 3. Open Settings app, go to General > Software Update
  4. 4. Download and install the available security update
  5. 5. Restart your device if prompted to complete the installation
Caveat Standard OS update risks (rare edge cases with third-party software compatibility)

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

Fix this in Ipad Os 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

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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-2023-42873 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