CVE-2023-32412 - Use-After-Free Vulnerability Resolved in watchOS, tvOS, macOS, iOS, and iPadOS Through Improved Memory Management

A use-after-free vulnerability, identified as CVE-2023-32412, was recently addressed across multiple Apple platforms, including watchOS, tvOS, macOS, iOS, and iPadOS, by introducing improved memory management features. This issue could have allowed a remote attacker to cause unexpected application termination or even execute arbitrary code on affected devices.

Background

A use-after-free vulnerability is a type of memory corruption flaw that occurs when a program continues to use a pointer after the memory it points to has been freed or deallocated. This can lead to various problems, such as application crashes, unexpected behaviors, and potential arbitrary code execution by a malicious attacker. In the case of CVE-2023-32412, this vulnerability affected several Apple platforms and devices, prompting swift action from the company to resolve the issue.

Analysis

CVE-2023-32412 was addressed by Apple through the implementation of improved memory management in the following platform versions:

iOS 16.5 and iPadOS 16.5

These updates effectively patched the use-after-free issue, mitigating the risk of remote attackers exploiting the vulnerability to cause unexpected application termination or arbitrary code execution on affected devices.

A typical use-after-free vulnerability might be illustrated by the following code snippet

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>

int main() {
    char *ptr = NULL;

    ptr = (char *)malloc(10 * sizeof(char));
    if (ptr == NULL) {
        printf("Memory allocation failed.\n");
        exit(1);
    }

    // Use the allocated memory
    ptr[] = 'A';
    printf("%c\n", ptr[]);

    // Free the allocated memory
    free(ptr);

    // Error! Use-after-free situation
    ptr[] = 'B';
    printf("%c\n", ptr[]);

    return ;
}

In this example, the memory pointed to by ptr is freed, but then accessed again later in the program, leading to a use-after-free situation.

For more information about the resolved vulnerability, you can refer to the following resources

- Apple Security Update
- CVE-2023-32412

Exploit Details

While no specific exploit details have been released for CVE-2023-32412, the vulnerability's nature suggests that a successful exploit might enable a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on affected devices, compromising their security and integrity.

To protect your devices and data, it is highly recommended to update to the appropriate platform version listed above. Keep your software up-to-date, and stay informed of any new security issues and patches to minimize the risk of such vulnerabilities in the future.

Timeline

Published on: 06/23/2023 18:15:00 UTC
Last modified on: 07/27/2023 04:15:00 UTC