CVE-2016-7657 in watchOS
Summary
by MITRE
An issue was discovered in certain Apple products. iOS before 10.2 is affected. macOS before 10.12.2 is affected. watchOS before 3.1.3 is affected. The issue involves the "IOKit" component. It allows attackers to obtain sensitive information from kernel memory via a crafted app.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/21/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2016-7657 represents a critical information disclosure flaw within Apple's IOKit kernel component that affected multiple operating systems including iOS versions prior to 10.2, macOS versions before 10.12.2, and watchOS versions before 3.1.3. This vulnerability resides in the kernel-level IOKit framework which serves as the foundation for hardware device drivers and system services in Apple's operating environments. The flaw enables malicious applications to exploit kernel memory access mechanisms and extract sensitive information that should remain protected from user-space applications.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from inadequate memory management and access control within the IOKit subsystem. Specifically, the flaw allows crafted applications to perform unauthorized memory reads from kernel space, potentially exposing confidential data such as cryptographic keys, user credentials, or system internals. This represents a classic privilege escalation vector where a sandboxed user application can bypass kernel security boundaries and access memory regions that should be restricted to kernel-level processes only. The vulnerability operates through improper validation of memory access requests within the kernel's device driver interfaces, creating an attack surface that enables information leakage without requiring elevated privileges.
The operational impact of CVE-2016-7657 extends beyond simple information disclosure, as the extracted kernel memory data could potentially reveal system architecture details, memory layouts, and sensitive operational parameters that attackers could leverage for more sophisticated attacks. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-200, which addresses improper information exposure, and represents a significant concern for Apple's security model where user applications should remain isolated from kernel memory spaces. The attack scenario typically involves an attacker distributing a malicious application through the App Store or via jailbreak tools, where the application would then exploit the IOKit vulnerability to read kernel memory contents. This flaw particularly affects the security posture of mobile and embedded systems where kernel-level access could provide attackers with insights into system internals that could be used for subsequent exploitation.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate system updates to the patched versions of iOS 10.2, macOS 10.12.2, and watchOS 3.1.3, which contain fixes for the IOKit memory access controls. Organizations should implement comprehensive patch management protocols to ensure all affected Apple devices receive updates promptly. Additionally, security monitoring should focus on identifying suspicious application behavior that might indicate attempts to exploit kernel memory access mechanisms. The remediation process should include verification that kernel memory protections are properly enforced and that IOKit framework components are operating within their intended security boundaries. This vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of kernel-level security controls and the potential consequences of inadequate memory protection mechanisms in operating system frameworks. The fix implemented by Apple addresses the root cause by strengthening access controls within the IOKit subsystem and ensuring proper memory isolation between user-space applications and kernel memory regions, aligning with security best practices outlined in various cybersecurity frameworks including those referenced in the ATT&CK framework for kernel-level exploitation techniques.