CVE-2023-41992: 
macOS vulnerability analysis and mitigation

CVE-2023-41992 is a local privilege escalation vulnerability affecting multiple Apple operating systems including iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. The vulnerability was discovered by Bill Marczak of The Citizen Lab and Maddie Stone of Google's Threat Analysis Group, and was fixed in iOS 16.7, iPadOS 16.7, macOS Monterey 12.7, and macOS Ventura 13.6 released on September 21, 2023. Apple acknowledged that this vulnerability was actively exploited against versions of iOS before iOS 16.7 (Apple Support).

The vulnerability stems from improper checks in the kernel component of affected Apple operating systems. It has been assigned a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.8 (High), with the vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-754 (Improper Check for Unusual or Exceptional Conditions) (NVD).

When exploited, this vulnerability allows a local attacker to elevate their privileges on the affected system. The high CVSS score indicates that successful exploitation could lead to complete compromise of system confidentiality, integrity, and availability (NVD).

Apple has addressed this vulnerability by implementing improved checks in the affected systems. Users should update to iOS 16.7, iPadOS 16.7, macOS Monterey 12.7, or macOS Ventura 13.6 or later versions to protect against this vulnerability (Apple Support, Apple Support, Apple Support).