Traffic interception via unenforced ATS encryption
Published Sep 26, 2023 · Updated Nov 4, 2025
ATS bypass in CFNetwork before iOS 17, iPadOS 17, tvOS 17, watchOS 10, and macOS 14 allows attackers to intercept app traffic. The URL Loading System treated cleartext HTTP requests to numeric IP addresses and .local hostnames as ATS-compliant instead of requiring TLS. Exploitation requires an ATS-protected app to connect to such an address over an attacker-observable network, exposing transmitted data and credentials to interception or modification.
Summary
What happened
ATS bypass in CFNetwork before iOS 17, iPadOS 17, tvOS 17, watchOS 10, and macOS 14 allows attackers to intercept app traffic. The URL Loading System treated cleartext HTTP requests to numeric IP addresses and .local hostnames as ATS-compliant instead of requiring TLS. Exploitation requires an ATS-protected app to connect to such an address over an attacker-observable network, exposing transmitted data and credentials to interception or modification.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2023-38596
- Published
- Sep 26, 2023
- Updated
- Nov 4, 2025
- Vendor
- Apple
- Product
- iOS and iPadOS
- Classifications
- T1040
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Sep 26, 2023CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Nov 4, 2025Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.
Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=unspecified <17
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
- Trail of Bits ATS cleartext-request proof of conceptproof of concept · demonstrated
Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.
Technologies
Your stack
See the directory against your own environment.
Your stack
Check the software in your environment
Book a demo to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.
Book a demo