Apple iOS/iPadOS up to 16.4.1 System Settings state issue

CVSS Meta Temp Score CVSS is a standardized scoring system to determine possibilities of attacks. The Temp Score considers temporal factors like disclosure, exploit and countermeasures. The unique Meta Score calculates the average score of different sources to provide a normalized scoring system.	Current Exploit Price (≈) Our analysts are monitoring exploit markets and are in contact with vulnerability brokers. The range indicates the observed or calculated exploit price to be seen on exploit markets. A good indicator to understand the monetary effort required for and the popularity of an attack.	CTI Interest Score Our Cyber Threat Intelligence team is monitoring different web sites, mailing lists, exploit markets and social media networks. The CTI Interest Score identifies the interest of attackers and the security community for this specific vulnerability in real-time. A high score indicates an elevated risk to be targeted for this vulnerability.
5.3	$5k-$25k	0.00

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability was found in Apple iOS and iPadOS up to 16.4.1. It has been classified as problematic. The affected element is an unknown function of the component System Settings. Performing a manipulation results in state issue. This vulnerability is identified as CVE-2023-28202. The attack is only possible with local access. There is not any exploit available. Upgrading the affected component is recommended.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability, which was classified as problematic, was found in Apple iOS and iPadOS up to 16.4.1 (Smartphone Operating System). This affects an unknown code block of the component System Settings. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a state issue vulnerability. CWE is classifying the issue as CWE-371. This is going to have an impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The summary by CVE is:

This issue was addressed with improved state management. This issue is fixed in iOS 16.5 and iPadOS 16.5, watchOS 9.5, tvOS 16.5, macOS Ventura 13.4. An app firewall setting may not take effect after exiting the Settings app.

The weakness was released 05/18/2023 as HT213757 as confirmed advisory (Website). The advisory is shared at support.apple.com. This vulnerability is uniquely identified as CVE-2023-28202. Neither technical details nor an exploit are publicly available. The price for an exploit might be around USD $5k-$25k at the moment (estimation calculated on 12/03/2025). It is expected to see the exploit prices for this product increasing in the near future. The advisory points out:

An app firewall setting may not take effect after exiting the Settings app

Upgrading to version 16.5 eliminates this vulnerability. A possible mitigation has been published immediately after the disclosure of the vulnerability. The advisory contains the following remark:

This issue was addressed with improved state management.

The vulnerability is also documented in the vulnerability database at EUVD (EUVD-2023-31910). Several companies clearly confirm that VulDB is the primary source for best vulnerability data.

Productinfo

Type

Smartphone Operating System

Vendor

Apple

Name

Version

License

commercial

Website

Vendor: https://www.apple.com/

CPE 2.3info

CPE 2.2info

CVSSv4info

VulDB Vector: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv3info

VulDB Meta Base Score: 5.4
VulDB Meta Temp Score: 5.3

VulDB Base Score: 5.3
VulDB Temp Score: 5.1
VulDB Vector: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

NVD Base Score: 5.5
NVD Vector: 🔍

CVSSv2info

AV	AC	Au	C	I	A
💳	💳	💳	💳	💳	💳
💳	💳	💳	💳	💳	💳
💳	💳	💳	💳	💳	💳

Vector	Complexity	Authentication	Confidentiality	Integrity	Availability
Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock
Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock
Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock

VulDB Base Score: 🔍
VulDB Temp Score: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

Exploitinginfo

Class: State issue
CWE: CWE-371
CAPEC: 🔍
ATT&CK: 🔍

Physical: Partially
Local: Yes
Remote: No

Availability: 🔍
Status: Not defined

EPSS Score: 🔍
EPSS Percentile: 🔍

Price Prediction: 🔍
Current Price Estimation: 🔍

0-Day	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock
Today	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock	Unlock

Threat Intelligenceinfo

Interest: 🔍
Active Actors: 🔍
Active APT Groups: 🔍

Countermeasuresinfo

Recommended: Upgrade
Status: 🔍

Reaction Time: 🔍
0-Day Time: 🔍
Exposure Time: 🔍

Upgrade: iOS/iPadOS 16.5

Timelineinfo

03/13/2023 🔍
05/18/2023 +65 days 🔍
05/18/2023 +0 days 🔍
05/20/2023 +2 days 🔍
12/03/2025 +928 days 🔍

Sourcesinfo

Vendor: apple.com

Advisory: HT213757
Status: Confirmed

CVE: CVE-2023-28202 (🔍)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2023-28202
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-229521
EUVD: 🔍
scip Labs: https://www.scip.ch/en/?labs.20150917

Entryinfo

Created: 05/20/2023 07:54
Updated: 12/03/2025 14:32
Changes: 05/20/2023 07:54 (18), 05/20/2023 07:57 (28), 06/15/2023 06:39 (1), 12/05/2024 18:31 (27), 12/03/2025 14:32 (1)
Complete: 🔍
Cache ID: 216::103

Several companies clearly confirm that VulDB is the primary source for best vulnerability data.