CVE-2023-28205: Apple Multiple Products WebKit Use-After-Free Vulnerability
- Is it exploited?
Yes. CISA added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 10 Apr 2023, the same day the CVE record was published.
- How likely is exploitation in the next 30 days?
- 27.1%
EPSS score, percentile 98 of all scored records
- How severe?
- 8.8 High
CVSS v3.1 base score, from CISA's enrichment of the record
- What should I do?
Required action (CISA), due 1 May 2023: Apply updates per vendor instructions.
The CVE record links no vendor advisory, patch or mitigation.
- Which versions are affected?
Affected: before 15.7; before 16.4; before 13.3; before 16.4
Source: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, 2026.10.28, as of 28 Oct 2026; FIRST Exploit Prediction Scoring System (EPSS), v2026.06.15, as of 28 Oct 2026; CVE List V5 (CVE Program), cve_2026-10-28_0000Z, as of 28 Oct 2026. About the data.
What to do
Required action, set by CISA
Apply updates per vendor instructions.
CISA due date for this action: 1 May 2023.
Advisories and patches
The CVE record links no vendor advisory, patch or mitigation.
Linked from CISA's catalog entry
- https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT213720,https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT213721,https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT213722,https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT213723
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-28205
Affected products and versions
As listed in the CVE record.
| Status | Versions |
|---|---|
| Affected | before 15.7 |
| Status | Versions |
|---|---|
| Affected | before 16.4 |
| Status | Versions |
|---|---|
| Affected | before 13.3 |
| Status | Versions |
|---|---|
| Affected | before 16.4 |
Source: CVE List V5 (CVE Program), cve_2026-10-28_0000Z, as of 28 Oct 2026. About the data.
About this vulnerability
Apple iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and Safari WebKit contain a use-after-free vulnerability that leads to code execution when processing maliciously crafted web content. This vulnerability could impact HTML parsers that use WebKit, including but not limited to Apple Safari and non-Apple products which rely on WebKit for HTML processing.
Summary: CISA's KEV catalog, as of 28 Oct 2026.
- CISA added CVE-2023-28205 to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog on 10 Apr 2023.
- CISA's ransomware flag for this entry is "Unknown": no evidence of ransomware use in the catalog, which is not proof of none.
- The due date CISA sets for the required action is 1 May 2023.
- The CVE record was published on 10 Apr 2023, the same day it was added to KEV.
- The CVE record carries a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.8 (High), taken from CISA's enrichment of the record.
- FIRST's EPSS model puts the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days at 27.1% (percentile 98), as of 28 Oct 2026.
- CISA's SSVC assessment in the CVE record: exploitation active, automatable no, technical impact total.
Source: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, 2026.10.28, as of 28 Oct 2026; CVE List V5 (CVE Program), cve_2026-10-28_0000Z, as of 28 Oct 2026; FIRST Exploit Prediction Scoring System (EPSS), v2026.06.15, as of 28 Oct 2026. About the data.
Description
A use after free issue was addressed with improved memory management. This issue is fixed in Safari 16.4.1, iOS 15.7.5 and iPadOS 15.7.5, iOS 16.4.1 and iPadOS 16.4.1, macOS Ventura 13.3.1. Processing maliciously crafted web content may lead to arbitrary code execution. Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited.
Source: CVE List V5 (CVE Program), cve_2026-10-28_0000Z, as of 28 Oct 2026. About the data.
Weakness
- CWE-416: Use After Free
CWE and CAPEC are maintained by MITRE; the entries are those named in the CVE record and the KEV entry.
Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 10 Apr 2023 | CVE record published |
| 10 Apr 2023 | Added to CISA KEV |
| 1 May 2023 | CISA due date for the required action |
| 21 Oct 2025 | CVE record last updated |
References
More exploited Apple vulnerabilities
- CVE-2026-86950: Apple Multiple Products Out-of-Bounds Write Vulnerability
- CVE-2026-65400: Apple macOS Improper Authentication Vulnerability
- CVE-2025-31277: Apple Multiple Products Buffer Overflow Vulnerability
- CVE-2025-43510: Apple Multiple Products Improper Locking Vulnerability
- CVE-2025-43520: Apple Multiple Products Classic Buffer Overflow Vulnerability
- CVE-2021-30952: Apple Multiple Products Integer Overflow or Wraparound Vulnerability