CVE-2024-23206 is a medium-severity vulnerability affecting Apple iOS and iPadOS platforms, as well as other Apple operating systems including watchOS, tvOS, and macOS. The vulnerability arises from an access control issue that allows a maliciously crafted webpage to perform user fingerprinting. Fingerprinting is a technique used to collect unique device and browser characteristics to track users without their consent or knowledge. In this case, the vulnerability enables a remote attacker, via a webpage, to gather enough information to uniquely identify or track a user across browsing sessions or websites. The vulnerability does not require any privileges or authentication but does require user interaction, such as visiting a malicious webpage. The CVSS 3.1 score is 6.5 (medium severity), with the vector indicating network attack vector (AV:N), low attack complexity (AC:L), no privileges required (PR:N), user interaction required (UI:R), unchanged scope (S:U), high confidentiality impact (C:H), no integrity impact (I:N), and no availability impact (A:N). The root cause is an access issue that was mitigated by improved access restrictions in the patched versions of Apple operating systems and Safari browser. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-200 (Exposure of Sensitive Information). There are no known exploits in the wild at the time of publication, and Apple has released patches in iOS 17.3, iPadOS 17.3, iOS 16.7.5, iPadOS 16.7.5, watchOS 10.3, tvOS 17.3, macOS Sonoma 14.3, and Safari 17.3 to address this issue.

For European organizations, this vulnerability poses a privacy and security risk primarily related to user tracking and profiling. Attackers exploiting this vulnerability could gather sensitive device and user information without consent, potentially enabling targeted phishing, surveillance, or profiling campaigns. This could impact organizations that rely on iOS and iPadOS devices for sensitive communications, including government agencies, financial institutions, healthcare providers, and enterprises with mobile workforces. The confidentiality of user data is at risk, which could lead to regulatory compliance issues under GDPR if personal data is exposed or misused. Although the vulnerability does not allow direct code execution or system compromise, the ability to fingerprint users can facilitate more sophisticated attacks or privacy violations. The requirement for user interaction (visiting a malicious webpage) means that social engineering or malicious advertising campaigns could be vectors for exploitation. The impact on availability and integrity is negligible, but the confidentiality impact is high, which is critical for privacy-sensitive sectors.

European organizations should prioritize patching affected Apple devices and browsers to the versions specified by Apple (iOS 17.3, iPadOS 17.3, iOS 16.7.5, iPadOS 16.7.5, watchOS 10.3, tvOS 17.3, macOS Sonoma 14.3, Safari 17.3). Beyond patching, organizations should implement network-level protections such as web filtering and DNS filtering to block access to known malicious or suspicious websites that could host fingerprinting scripts. User awareness training should emphasize the risks of visiting untrusted websites and clicking on unknown links, especially on mobile devices. Deploying mobile device management (MDM) solutions can help enforce timely updates and restrict installation of unapproved applications or browser extensions that might facilitate fingerprinting. Additionally, organizations can consider deploying privacy-enhancing technologies such as browser privacy modes, content blockers, or VPNs to reduce fingerprinting surface. Monitoring network traffic for unusual patterns or connections to suspicious domains can also help detect exploitation attempts. Finally, organizations should review their data protection policies and ensure compliance with GDPR regarding user privacy and data handling.