CVE-2016-7632 in iCloud
Summary
by MITRE
An issue was discovered in certain Apple products. iOS before 10.2 is affected. Safari before 10.0.2 is affected. iCloud before 6.1 is affected. iTunes before 12.5.4 is affected. The issue involves the "WebKit" component. It allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption and application crash) via a crafted web site.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/25/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2016-7632 represents a critical memory corruption flaw within Apple's WebKit rendering engine that affected multiple Apple products including iOS versions prior to 10.2, Safari versions before 10.0.2, iCloud versions before 6.1, and iTunes versions before 12.5.4. This vulnerability resides in the WebKit component which serves as the core browser engine responsible for rendering web content across Apple's ecosystem. The flaw manifests as a heap-based buffer overflow or memory corruption issue that can be triggered through maliciously crafted web content, making it particularly dangerous as it can be exploited remotely without requiring user interaction beyond visiting a compromised website. The vulnerability falls under CWE-121, heap-based buffer overflow, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1203 for exploitation of web browsers, representing a significant threat to user security and system integrity.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when a remote attacker crafts a malicious website containing specially designed web content that triggers memory corruption within the WebKit engine. This typically involves manipulating JavaScript or HTML elements in ways that cause the browser to allocate memory incorrectly or access memory locations outside of allocated boundaries. The memory corruption can result in arbitrary code execution with the privileges of the compromised browser process, effectively allowing attackers to gain full control over the affected system. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond simple code execution as it can also cause denial of service conditions through application crashes or system instability, making it a dual threat that can be used for both persistent attacks and disruption campaigns.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability presents a substantial risk to Apple users since WebKit is actively used across multiple platforms and applications, creating numerous attack vectors for threat actors. The affected products represent critical user touchpoints including mobile operating systems, web browsers, cloud services, and media management applications, making the potential attack surface extremely broad. The remote exploitation nature means that users do not need to perform any specific actions beyond visiting a malicious website, which makes this vulnerability particularly dangerous in phishing campaigns or compromised websites. Security researchers have documented that such vulnerabilities often remain unpatched for extended periods, allowing attackers to develop and deploy sophisticated attack frameworks targeting these specific versions.
Organizations and individual users should prioritize immediate remediation by updating to the patched versions of affected software, which include iOS 10.2, Safari 10.0.2, iCloud 6.1, and iTunes 12.5.4. Additional mitigations should include implementing network-based protections such as web application firewalls and content filtering solutions to block access to known malicious domains. Browser hardening techniques including disabling unnecessary JavaScript features, implementing strict content security policies, and using sandboxing technologies can provide additional layers of defense. Security monitoring should include detection of unusual browser behavior, memory allocation patterns, and network connections that might indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of maintaining up-to-date software and implementing comprehensive patch management processes across all enterprise environments to prevent exploitation of similar zero-day vulnerabilities in the future.