Threats / Apple / CVE-2023-41991
CVE-2023-41991
· EUVD no mirror located
· GCVE no mirror located
Verified 2026-06-22
Apple Multiple Products vulnerability
Apple iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and watchOS contain improper certificate validation allowing malicious apps to bypass signature verification.
Verdict
Today item — known-exploited.
A malicious application can exploit weak certificate validation to circumvent code signing protections across multiple Apple platforms. Active exploitation in the wild increases risk despite low EPSS score.
01
Is it exploitable?
— the evidence, ranked above the scoreExploit available
Public proof-of-concept exploit code is cataloged for this vulnerability.We link the existence of the exploit; we do not host or redistribute payloads.
Reported exploitation
15 independent public reports of in-the-wild exploitation are cataloged.Distinct reporting sources (vendor, incident response, government); open them for the underlying claims.
Exploited in the wild
Listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2023-09-25).
Probability (EPSS)
EPSS 0.04547 — modeled likelihood of exploitation activity.EPSS is a daily-changing model output — open the source for today's value.
Severity / affected
Affected: Apple, Multiple Products. Confirm exact fixed builds in the vendor advisory.
Weakness (CWE)
Mapped to CWE-295 Improper Certificate Validation — weakness family: Authentication.CWE assignment from the public NVD record; the weakness class drives how the flaw is exploited.
02
Who’s exploiting it?
— attribution turns risk into urgencyAttribution not established
No confirmed (advisory-backed) threat-actor attribution is established for this record. Absence of a named actor is not absence of compromise — see Coverage & confidence.
03
Why it matters
— the attack path, told twice: adversary, then board1
Front door — unauthenticated access narrative 1
Attacker
I craft a malicious app that exploits improper certificate validation to forge or bypass Apple's code signature checks.
Business
Unauthorized code execution on user devices undermines platform security guarantees and erodes customer trust in app store protections.
2
Keys to the kingdom — privilege/identity takeover narrative 2
Attacker
I distribute the app through unofficial channels or social engineering, targeting users who may sideload or trust compromised sources.
Business
Increased support costs, reputational damage, and potential liability for data breaches resulting from compromised devices.
3
Lateral reach — past segmentation narrative 3
Attacker
I use the validation bypass to install persistent malware, steal credentials, or exfiltrate sensitive user data.
Business
Regulatory exposure under privacy laws, customer notification obligations, and potential class action litigation.
04
What to do
— defensible action- Remediate per the vendor advisory — confirm the fixed build for your version and verify exposure.1
Say it to the boardA vulnerability with this evidence profile is a defensible budget line, not a backlog ticket — fund the change against the proof above.
05