CVE-2016-4772 in tvOS
Summary
by MITRE
The kernel in Apple iOS before 10, OS X before 10.12, tvOS before 10, and watchOS before 3 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (unintended lock) via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/21/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2016-4772 represents a critical kernel-level flaw affecting multiple Apple operating systems including iOS versions prior to 10, OS X versions before 10.12, tvOS versions before 10, and watchOS versions before 3. This issue resides within the kernel component of these operating systems, which serves as the core foundation responsible for system-level operations and resource management. The vulnerability manifests as an unintended lock condition that can be triggered remotely by attackers, potentially leading to complete system denial of service. The unspecified vectors suggest that the flaw could be exploited through various attack surfaces, making it particularly concerning for security professionals as the exact exploitation methods remain undisclosed in the public CVE description.
The technical nature of this vulnerability places it within the realm of kernel-level exploits that can fundamentally compromise system stability and availability. As a kernel vulnerability, it operates at the most privileged level of the operating system, giving attackers the potential to disrupt critical system functions without requiring user interaction or elevated privileges. The specific mechanism that causes the unintended lock likely involves improper handling of system resources or synchronization primitives within kernel memory management or process scheduling components. This type of vulnerability falls under the broader category of denial of service conditions that can be classified as CWE-476, which deals with null pointer dereferences, or more specifically CWE-119, which addresses memory access violations that can lead to system instability and lock conditions.
The operational impact of CVE-2016-4772 extends beyond simple service interruption as it can render affected devices completely unusable until manual reboot occurs. This type of vulnerability directly contradicts the fundamental security principle of availability and can be particularly damaging in enterprise environments where device uptime is critical. The remote exploitation capability means that attackers can trigger the denial of service condition from external networks without requiring physical access to the target device, making it a significant concern for mobile device management and enterprise security policies. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability would be categorized under T1499.004 for network denial of service and potentially T1068 for local privilege escalation if the lock condition can be leveraged to gain additional system control.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability primarily involve prompt deployment of security patches released by Apple, as the issue affects multiple operating system versions across different device types. Organizations should prioritize patch management processes to ensure all affected devices receive updates immediately upon release. System administrators should also implement network monitoring to detect potential exploitation attempts and establish incident response procedures for handling device lock conditions. The vulnerability highlights the importance of kernel-level security hardening and proper resource management in operating system design. Additionally, implementing network segmentation and access controls can help limit the potential impact of such remote exploitation attempts while maintaining operational security posture against similar vulnerabilities. Regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify and remediate similar kernel-level weaknesses that could potentially lead to system lock conditions and availability disruption.