Cyber Resilience

CVE-2022-32894

Memory Safety in Apple Macos 11.0 – 11.7

CISA KEVActive ExploitationEUVD ExploitedMemory Safety
Published
24 August 2022
Modified
23 October 2025
KEV Added
18 August 2022
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 7.8
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.033 87th percentile
Risk Priority 83 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2022-32894 is a high-severity Out-of-bounds Write (CWE-787) vulnerability in Apple Macos. Its CVSS base score is 7.8 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked in the top 13% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; CISA has added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

An out-of-bounds write vulnerability addressed through improved bounds checking affects Apple iOS, iPadOS, and macOS Monterey. The flaw is present in versions prior to iOS 15.6.1, iPadOS 15.6.1, and macOS Monterey 12.5.1, and it carries a CVSS 3.1 score of 7.8 under CWE-787.

A local attacker can exploit the issue by supplying a malicious application that triggers the out-of-bounds write. Successful exploitation grants the application arbitrary code execution with kernel privileges; the attack requires user interaction to open or install the application.

Apple security updates HT213412 and HT213413, along with corresponding Full Disclosure mailings, direct administrators to install the fixed releases for iOS, iPadOS, and macOS Monterey. No additional configuration changes or workarounds are documented in the advisories.

Apple has stated it is aware of reports that the vulnerability may have been actively exploited in the wild. The associated EPSS score rose from a low baseline after disclosure to a peak of 0.0136 on 2023-01-01 before receding to its current value of 0.0033.

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

An out-of-bounds write issue was addressed with improved bounds checking. This issue is fixed in iOS 15.6.1 and iPadOS 15.6.1, macOS Monterey 12.5.1. An application may be able to execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges. Apple is aware of a…

more

report that this issue may have been actively exploited.

CWE(s)
KEV Date Added
18 August 2022

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1068 Exploitation for Privilege Escalation Privilege Escalation
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to elevate privileges.
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution Execution
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in client applications to execute code.
T1210 Exploitation of Remote Services Lateral Movement
Adversaries may exploit remote services to gain unauthorized access to internal systems once inside of a network.
T1211 Exploitation for Stealth Stealth
Adversaries may exploit vulnerabilities to evade detection by hiding activity, suppressing logging, or operating within trusted or unmonitored components.
T1212 Exploitation for Credential Access Credential Access
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to collect credentials.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2021-30807Same product: Apple Ipadosboth on KEV
CVE-2022-22675Same product: Apple Ipadosboth on KEV
CVE-2020-27930Same product: Apple Ipadosboth on KEV
CVE-2021-30665Same product: Apple Ipadosboth on KEV
CVE-2021-30883Same product: Apple Ipadosboth on KEV
CVE-2022-22587Same product: Apple Ipadosboth on KEV
CVE-2023-28206Same product: Apple Ipadosboth on KEV
CVE-2020-9818Same product: Apple Ipadosboth on KEV
CVE-2022-32917Same product: Apple Ipadosboth on KEV
CVE-2021-30900Same product: Apple Ipadosboth on KEV

Affected Assets

apple
ipados
≤ 15.6.1
apple
iphone os
≤ 15.6.1
apple
macos
11.0 — 11.7 · 12.0 — 12.5.1
apple
watchos
≤ 9.0

Mitigating Controls

Likely Mitigating Controls AI

Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.

addresses: CWE-787

Out-of-bounds writes that corrupt control flow or inject shellcode are rendered non-executable by the same memory protections.

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

Secure-development practices (static analysis, bounds checking, code review) are the primary means of preventing out-of-bounds writes.

ID.RA-01 partial match
prevents

Vulnerability scanning and recording can discover out-of-bounds write flaws so they can be remediated.

PR.PS-02 partial match
prevents

Patching or replacing vulnerable software directly eliminates known instances of this coding weakness.

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

finds

Security testing in development and acceptance can detect and prevent out-of-bounds write defects.

prevents

Secure development life cycle mandates practices that prevent out-of-bounds writes.

prevents

Application security requirements can specify bounds-checking and safe memory handling.

prevents

Secure architecture and engineering principles reduce the likelihood of buffer overflows.

prevents

Secure coding directly addresses out-of-bounds writes through language choice and coding standards.

prevents

Change management can enforce review gates that catch unsafe memory operations before deployment.

References