CVE-2018-4460 in macOS
Summary
by MITRE
A denial of service issue was addressed by removing the vulnerable code. This issue affected versions prior to iOS 12.1.1, macOS Mojave 10.14.2, tvOS 12.1.1, watchOS 5.1.2.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/18/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-4460 represents a denial of service condition that was successfully mitigated through code removal in Apple's operating systems. This issue affected multiple platform versions including iOS 12.1.1 and earlier, macOS Mojave 10.14.2 and earlier, tvOS 12.1.1 and earlier, and watchOS 5.1.2 and earlier. The vulnerability was classified under the Common Weakness Enumeration framework as a weakness related to improper handling of system resources or memory management issues that could lead to system instability. The flaw specifically manifested in the operating system's ability to process certain inputs or requests that would cause the system to become unresponsive or crash entirely.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stemmed from inadequate input validation mechanisms within Apple's system frameworks that were responsible for processing network requests or system calls. When malicious or malformed inputs were processed by the affected systems, they would trigger a cascade of errors that resulted in the complete suspension of system services or the termination of critical processes. This type of vulnerability falls under the ATT&CK framework's system service manipulation category, where adversaries can leverage such weaknesses to disrupt normal system operations. The affected components likely included network stack processing modules or system call handlers that did not properly validate the integrity or legitimacy of incoming requests before attempting to process them.
The operational impact of CVE-2018-4460 was significant for users of the affected Apple platforms, as it could result in complete system unavailability or forced restarts during normal operation. Attackers could potentially exploit this vulnerability to cause service disruption for individual users or even impact larger networked environments where multiple devices were connected. The vulnerability was particularly concerning because it affected core operating system functionality rather than just individual applications, meaning that a successful exploitation would impact the entire system rather than isolated software components. This type of denial of service vulnerability could be leveraged by threat actors to perform persistent disruption attacks against targeted systems or organizations.
Apple's resolution for this vulnerability involved the complete removal of the vulnerable code sections from the affected operating system versions. This approach aligns with industry best practices for addressing critical system-level flaws where the safest solution is often to eliminate the problematic functionality entirely rather than attempt to patch or modify the existing implementation. The remediation process required users to update their systems to versions that included the patched codebase, with iOS 12.1.1, macOS Mojave 10.14.2, tvOS 12.1.1, and watchOS 5.1.2 serving as the minimum required versions to address the vulnerability. Organizations implementing security controls should have prioritized this update as part of their vulnerability management processes, particularly in environments where system availability was critical for business operations. The fix demonstrates Apple's approach to addressing system-level vulnerabilities through comprehensive code removal rather than partial patches, which helps prevent similar issues from arising from incomplete remediation efforts.