Exploited

CVE-2023-41990

Apple iOS / iPadOS / macOS · Phones, tablets and chipsets

Apple Multiple Products Code Execution Vulnerability

At a glance

Exploited. Added to CISA’s catalog of exploited vulnerabilities on January 8, 2024.

Affected product: Apple iOS / iPadOS / macOS (category Phones, tablets and chipsets, indicative classification). Name in CISA’s catalog: Apple Multiple Products.

What should I do?

Apply the patches or mitigations from Apple; if none are available, stop using the product.

Deadline set by CISA for US federal agencies: 21 days (due January 29, 2024). It only binds those agencies, but it is a useful measure of urgency.

Apple security advisories page (general page, not the advisory for this vulnerability)
The vendor’s specific advisory is listed in the NVD references: CVE-2023-41990 on the NVD website.

Original text of the required action (CISA)

Apply mitigations per vendor instructions or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

Timeline

September 12, 2023 Vulnerability published Publication date (NVD)
January 8, 2024 Exploitation confirmed Added to CISA’s KEV catalog
January 29, 2024 CISA deadline Remediation deadline set for US federal agencies

The facts, with their sources

Exploitation confirmed: Yes, on January 8, 2024 Date added to the catalog of exploited vulnerabilities. Exploitation itself may have started earlier. Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
Ransomware: No known use to date That does not guarantee it is not being used: the information is not public. Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
Hunt for compromise: Not requested by CISA Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
CISA required action: Apply the patches or mitigations from Apple; if none are available, stop using the product. Rewritten by this site from CISA’s original text. Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
CISA deadline: January 29, 2024, 21 days Set for US federal agencies: a measure of urgency, not an obligation elsewhere. Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
Vulnerability published: September 12, 2023 Source: National Vulnerability Database (NVD), collected September 29, 2026 at 15:00 UTC
Product according to CISA: Apple Multiple Products Filed by this site under “Phones, tablets and chipsets” (indicative classification). Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 14:57 UTC
CVSS vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Technical detail of the score: attack vector, complexity, impact. Source: National Vulnerability Database (NVD), collected September 29, 2026 at 15:00 UTC

Severity and activity

7.8 / 10 CVSS severity: high

Score from the NVD. Collected Sep 29, 2026.

— Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days (EPSS)

FIRST’s EPSS model. Since exploitation is already confirmed, this figure is mostly useful to compare activity. Collected Sep 29, 2026.

Description

The issue was addressed with improved handling of caches. This issue is fixed in tvOS 16.3, iOS 16.3 and iPadOS 16.3, macOS Monterey 12.6.8, macOS Big Sur 11.7.9, iOS 15.7.8 and iPadOS 15.7.8, macOS Ventura 13.2, watchOS 9.3. Processing a font file may lead to arbitrary code execution. Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited against versions of iOS released before iOS 15.7.1.

Apple iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, and watchOS contain an unspecified vulnerability that allows for code execution when processing a font file.

Summary from CISA (KEV catalog).

CERT-FR advisories

No advisory among the latest CERT-FR publications this site follows. That does not mean there are none.

Information reused under the Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab); the date of last update is shown for each advisory. This site is neither affiliated with nor endorsed by ANSSI.

Sources for this page

CISA KEV catalog: exploitation, date added, required action, deadline, ransomware.
NVD (NIST): CVSS severity, publication date, description, vendor references.
EPSS (FIRST): probability of exploitation.
CERT-FR: advisories and alerts (in French).
Brand and category: indicative classification by this site (method).