Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

SecurityWeekSecurityWeek

Vulnerabilities

Over 60 Vulnerabilities Patched in Apple TV

Apple has patched more than 60 vulnerabilities with the release of Apple TV 7.2.1, including flaws that can lead to arbitrary code execution, application crashes, and information disclosure.

Apple has patched more than 60 vulnerabilities with the release of Apple TV 7.2.1, including flaws that can lead to arbitrary code execution, application crashes, and information disclosure.

The last time Apple issued an update for Apple TV was in April 2015 when it released version 7.2. It has since released two updates for tvOS, the operating system developed for the fourth generation of the company’s media player.

With the release of version 7.2.1, Apple resolved security holes in over 20 different components of the third generation of Apple TV, including WebKit, the kernel, the third-party app sandbox, Office Viewer, IOKit, ImageIO, FontParser, DiskImages, bootp, CloudKit, and various libraries.

The list of issues patched by Apple includes vulnerabilities that can be exploited for information disclosure, execution of unsigned code, arbitrary code execution, application crashes, and modifications to protected parts of the filesystem.

It’s worth pointing out that the vulnerabilities resolved by Apple on Thursday are not new. They were fixed last year in several other products, including OS X Yosemite 10.10.5, Safari 8.0.8, and El Capitan 10.11.

This is the fourth series of updates released by Apple in 2016. The Cupertino-based company previously released fixes for tvOS, Safari, OS X, iOS and QuickTime.

Advertisement. Scroll to continue reading.

Apple has been trying to make its products increasingly secure, up to the point where even the company can’t hack into its customers’ devices. While many users and privacy advocates applaud the initiative, authorities are not too happy about it.

The FBI is currently trying to convince a judge to force Apple to create an alternative operating system for its iPhone that would allow investigators to brute-force the PIN on the phone of the San Bernardino shooter.

The tech industry is largely backing Apple on the decision to oppose a judge’s initial order asking the company to comply with the FBI’s request for what Apple CEO Tim Cook calls a “backdoor.” However, a recent survey showed that a majority of Americans have sided with the FBI

Related: Apple Case Not About Setting Precedent, Says FBI Chief

Related: Apple Chief Calls FBI iPhone Case ‘Bad for America’

Related: Industry Reactions to FBI’s Request for iPhone Backdoor

Written By

Eduard Kovacs (@EduardKovacs) is senior managing editor at SecurityWeek. He worked as a high school IT teacher before starting a career in journalism in 2011. Eduard holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial informatics and a master’s degree in computer techniques applied in electrical engineering.

Daily Briefing Newsletter

Subscribe to the SecurityWeek Email Briefing for the latest cybersecurity threats, trends, and expert insights.

Click to comment

Trending

Daily Briefing Newsletter

Subscribe to the SecurityWeek Email Briefing to stay informed on the latest threats, trends, and technology, along with insightful columns from industry experts.

Join this live webinar as we explore if detection-first security operations can keep pace with AI, or if it’s time to rethink prevention as the strongest default.

Register

CodeSecCon bridges the gap between dev and security. Discover best practices for secure coding, innovative risk-reduction tools, and safe AI integration to cultivate a true DevSecOps culture. Safely secure your apps!

Register

People on the Move

Erika Dean has been appointed Chief Information Security Officer at Tricentis.

C1 has named Jeff St. Clair Chief Revenue Officer.

John Opala has joined Ralph Lauren as Chief Information Security Officer.

More People On The Move

Expert Insights

Daily Briefing Newsletter

Subscribe to the SecurityWeek Email Briefing to stay informed on the latest cybersecurity news, threats, and expert insights. Unsubscribe at any time.