CVE-2023-42916
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved input validation. This issue is fixed in iOS 17.1.2 and iPadOS 17.1.2, macOS Sonoma 14.1.2, Safari 17.1.2. Processing web content may disclose sensitive information. Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been exploited against versions of iOS before iOS 16.7.1.
- CVSS
- 6.5Mediumscored by CISA
- Exploited in the wild
- Yes, in CISA KEV since 4 Dec 2023CISA deadline for US federal agencies: 25 Dec 2023
- EPSS
- 17.8%chance of exploitation in the next 30 daystop 3% of scored CVEsFIRST score of 11 Nov 2026
- Fix
- Patch availablesee the advisories in the references
- Published
- 30 Nov 2023analysed here 12 Nov 2026
Do first. Apply remediations or mitigations per vendor instructions or discontinue use of the product if remediation or mitigations are unavailable. (CISA's required action for this KEV entry)
Summary
Triage
The summary, impact and action text on this page are written by our AI analysis pipeline, or taken from the NVD description when a CVE was imported from NVD. They are not the vendor's wording: check them against the sources. A longer AI executive summary and technical analysis are generated for signed-in accounts on the Max plan.
Affected products
| Product | Affected versions | Vendor says fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| Apple iOS and iPadOS | < 17.1Vendor says fixed in: not stated | |
| Apple macOS | < 14.1Vendor says fixed in: not stated | |
| Apple Safari | < 17.1Vendor says fixed in: not stated |
As published in the CVE Program record. A version outside these ranges is not a statement that it is unaffected — vendors sometimes understate a range, and distribution-backported builds carry upstream numbers that do not reflect what was patched into them.
Products named in our analysis
- apple:safari
- apple:ipados
- apple:iphone_os
- apple:macos
- fedoraproject:fedora
- debian:debian_linux
- webkitgtk:webkitgtk\+
Fix and mitigation
WAF and other mitigations
Can a WAF block it? No. This is an out-of-bounds read. Generic WAF rules do not recognise the input that triggers it; only a rule written for this specific CVE can, and only if the triggering request has a recognisable shape.
Also consider: patch
Based on the weakness type only; no CVE-specific evidence yet. We check Cloudflare, AWS, Google Cloud Armor and Azure; for Akamai, Imperva, Fastly, F5, ask your vendor.
Remediation steps (AI-written)
Step-by-step remediation is generated for accounts on the Max plan, for CVEs that match a technology in their stack. Add this technology to your stack to see the fix checklist.
Exploitation evidence
- CISA KEV catalog
- Listed since 4 Dec 2023.
- CISA due date
- 25 Dec 2023, the remediation deadline for US federal agencies
- CISA required action
- Apply remediations or mitigations per vendor instructions or discontinue use of the product if remediation or mitigations are unavailable.
- Public exploit code
- None on record in Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei templates or PoC-in-GitHub.
- CISA SSVC
- exploitation active, automatable no, technical impact partialAssessed by CISA 2 Dec 2023 (SSVC 2.0.3). Exploitation is none, poc (public proof of concept) or active.
Timeline
- 30 Nov 2023Published
- 2 Dec 2023CISA SSVC assessment: exploitation active1 day later
- 4 Dec 2023Added to CISA KEV (exploited in the wild)2 days later
- 25 Dec 2023CISA remediation due date (US federal agencies)21 days later
- 21 Oct 2025CVE record last updated667 days (about 2 years) later
- 12 Nov 2026Analysed by vulneraibility.com387 days (about 1 year) later
CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
| Metric | Value | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Attack vector | NetworkReachable over the internet or any routable network. | Reachable over the internet or any routable network. |
| Attack complexity | LowRepeatable attack, no special conditions. | Repeatable attack, no special conditions. |
| Privileges required | NoneThe attacker needs no prior access. | The attacker needs no prior access. |
| User interaction | RequiredA victim must click, open or otherwise cooperate. | A victim must click, open or otherwise cooperate. |
| Scope | UnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component. | Impact stays within the vulnerable component. |
| Confidentiality | HighTotal data disclosure possible. | Total data disclosure possible. |
| Integrity | NoneNo unauthorised modification. | No unauthorised modification. |
| Availability | NoneThe service stays up. | The service stays up. |
Common questions
Is CVE-2023-42916 being exploited?
Yes. CVE-2023-42916 appears in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, which means exploitation in the wild has been confirmed and reported. Treat it as active rather than theoretical, and patch it ahead of higher-scoring vulnerabilities that carry no exploitation evidence.
How severe is CVE-2023-42916?
CVE-2023-42916 is rated Medium with a CVSS score of 6.5. Severity describes how bad exploitation would be, not how likely it is: pair it with exploitation evidence before deciding what to patch first.
Is there a patch for CVE-2023-42916?
Yes. A fix has been recorded for CVE-2023-42916. The vendor advisory is the authority on the exact fixed version — apply it from there rather than from a summary.
What does CVE-2023-42916 affect?
CVE-2023-42916 affects apple:safari, apple:ipados, apple:iphone_os, apple:macos, and 3 further products or versions. Confirm the exact affected versions against the vendor advisory before deciding you are exposed.
Exploitation status reflects CISA's KEV catalog as we last synced it. Check the catalog directly.
References
19 references in the CVE record, grouped by the tags the record gives them.
Other links (19)
- support.apple.com /en-us/HT214033
- support.apple.com /en-us/HT214032
- support.apple.com /en-us/HT214031
- support.apple.com /kb/HT214033
- openwall.com /lists/oss-security/2023/12/05/1
- lists.fedoraproject.org /archives/list/[email protected]/message/P5LQS6VEI7VIZNC7
Show 13 more
- lists.fedoraproject.org /archives/list/[email protected]/message/AD2KIHHCUBQC2YYH
- support.apple.com /kb/HT214034
- debian.org /security/2023/dsa-5575
- seclists.org /fulldisclosure/2023/Dec/3
- seclists.org /fulldisclosure/2023/Dec/4
- seclists.org /fulldisclosure/2023/Dec/5
- seclists.org /fulldisclosure/2023/Dec/8
- seclists.org /fulldisclosure/2023/Dec/13
- seclists.org /fulldisclosure/2023/Dec/12
- security.gentoo.org /glsa/202401-04
- support.apple.com /kb/HT214062
- seclists.org /fulldisclosure/2024/Jan/35
- cisa.gov /known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2023-42916
Where the data on this page comes from
- CVE List (CVE.org): description, affected versions, references; CVE Terms of Use
- NVD: CVSS and CPE data
- CISA KEV catalog: exploitation, date added, due date
- CISA Vulnrichment (ADP): SSVC decision points
- FIRST EPSS: exploit probability and percentile
Summary, impact and triage tags: written by our AI analysis pipeline from the sources above. Check them against the sources.
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