What is CVE-2023-38606?

CVE-2023-38606 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Apple iOS And Ipados. CVSS score: 5.5/10. Published 2023-07-27.

How severe is CVE-2023-38606?

Medium severity. CVSS v3 base score is 5.5 out of 10.

Is CVE-2023-38606 known to be exploited?

Yes. CVE-2023-38606 is listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2023-07-26), indicating it is being actively exploited. 4 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed.

Vulnerability in Apple iOS And Ipados

CVE-2023-38606

This issue was addressed with improved state management. This issue is fixed in macOS Monterey 12.6.8, iOS 15.7.8 and iPadOS 15.7.8, iOS 16.6 and iPadOS 16.6, tvOS 16.6, macOS Big Sur 11.7.9, macOS Ventura 13.5, watchOS 9.6. An app may be able to modify sensitive kernel state. Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited against versions of iOS released before iOS 15.7.1.

Published 2023-07-27 · last modified 2026-06-17.

CVSS v3 metric

CVSS v3 base score 5.5 (Medium). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N.

EPSS exploit prediction

EPSS: 0.029 (86.7th percentile), scored 2026-10-19.

Low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, but still tracked. 87th percentile — 86.7% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.

EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.029 · newest: 0.029 · change: 0.000

Affected products

Apple iOS And Ipados — versions unspecified
Apple Ipados
Apple Iphone OS
Apple macOS — versions unspecified
Apple tvOS — versions unspecified
Apple watchOS — versions unspecified

CISA KEV (Known Exploited Vulnerabilities)

This CVE is on the CISA KEV catalog, added on 2023-07-26. CISA KEV inclusion means CISA has confirmed in-the-wild exploitation; US federal agencies are required to remediate within a published due date.

BOD 22-01 due date: 2023-08-16.

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

Public proof-of-concept exploits

References

support.apple.com/en-us/HT213846 (Vendor Advisory)
support.apple.com/en-us/HT213841 (Vendor Advisory)
support.apple.com/en-us/HT213843 (Vendor Advisory)
support.apple.com/en-us/HT213842 (Vendor Advisory)
support.apple.com/en-us/HT213845 (Vendor Advisory)
support.apple.com/en-us/HT213844 (Vendor Advisory)
support.apple.com/en-us/HT213848 (Vendor Advisory)
134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0 (US Government Resource)

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2023-38606?: CVE-2023-38606 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Apple iOS And Ipados. CVSS score: 5.5/10. Published 2023-07-27.
How severe is CVE-2023-38606?: Medium severity. CVSS v3 base score is 5.5 out of 10.
Is CVE-2023-38606 known to be exploited?: Yes. CVE-2023-38606 is listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2023-07-26), indicating it is being actively exploited. 4 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed.