# CVE-2018-4115: Security feature bypass in n/a

> Attackers can bypass intended access restrictions in Apple operating systems by exploiting incorrect configuration-profile persistence in CFPreferences.

- **Severity:** Critical 9.8 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 3 Apr 2018
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-mh38-x4mv-9qfc

## What is CVE-2018-4115?

CVE-2018-4115 is a critical vulnerability in Apple Iphone Os, published on 3 Apr 2018. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

An issue was discovered in certain Apple products. iOS before 11.3 is affected. macOS before 10.13.4 is affected. tvOS before 11.3 is affected. watchOS before 4.3 is affected. The issue involves CFPreferences in the "System Preferences" component. It allows attackers to bypass intended access restrictions by leveraging incorrect configuration-profile persistence.

Weakness: CWE-281 (Improper Preservation of Permissions)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2018-4115?

It affects 4 products.


Products: Apple Iphone Os, Apple Mac Os X, Apple Tvos, Apple Watchos.

## How do I fix CVE-2018-4115?

No fix has been published for CVE-2018-4115 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2018-4115 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2018-4115 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Apple Iphone Os

- [CVE-2021-30666](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-30666/): Apple iOS WebKit Buffer Overflow (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2021-30761](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-30761/): Apple iOS WebKit Memory Corruption (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2021-30762](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-30762/): Apple iOS WebKit Use-After-Free (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2016-4657](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-4657/): Apple iOS Webkit Memory Corruption (high 8.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2019-7286](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-7286/): Apple Multiple Products Memory Corruption (high 7.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2018-4115 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2018-4115 is a critical vulnerability in Apple Iphone Os, published on 3 Apr 2018. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2018-4115 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Apple Iphone Os. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-4115/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-4115/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2018-4115
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-4115
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2018-4115

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-4115/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.