safari 16.3

About the security content of iOS 16.3 and iPadOS 16.3

This document describes the security content of iOS 16.3 and iPadOS 16.3.

About Apple security updates

For our customers' protection, Apple doesn't disclose, discuss, or confirm security issues until an investigation has occurred and patches or releases are available. Recent releases are listed on the  Apple security updates  page.

Apple security documents reference vulnerabilities by  CVE-ID  when possible.

For more information about security, see the  Apple Product Security  page.

iOS 16.3 and iPadOS 16.3

Released January 23, 2023

AppleMobileFileIntegrity

Available for: iPhone 8 and later, iPad Pro (all models), iPad Air 3rd generation and later, iPad 5th generation and later, and iPad mini 5th generation and later

Impact: An app may be able to bypass Privacy preferences

Description: This issue was addressed with improved checks to prevent unauthorized actions.

CVE-2023-32438: Csaba Fitzl (@theevilbit) of Offensive Security and Mickey Jin (@patch1t)

Impact: An app may be able to access user-sensitive data

Description: This issue was addressed by enabling hardened runtime.

CVE-2023-23499: Wojciech Reguła (@_r3ggi) of SecuRing (wojciechregula.blog)

Crash Reporter

Impact: A user may be able to read arbitrary files as root

Description: A race condition was addressed with additional validation.

CVE-2023-23520: Cees Elzinga

Impact: Processing a font file may lead to arbitrary code execution. Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited against versions of iOS released before iOS 15.7.1.

Description: The issue was addressed with improved handling of caches.

CVE-2023-41990: Apple

Impact: An app may be able to execute arbitrary code out of its sandbox or with certain elevated privileges

Description: The issue was addressed with improved memory handling.

CVE-2023-23530: Austin Emmitt (@alkalinesec), Senior Security Researcher at Trellix Advanced Research Center

CVE-2023-23531: Austin Emmitt (@alkalinesec), Senior Security Researcher at Trellix Advanced Research Center

Impact: Processing an image may lead to a denial-of-service

Description: A memory corruption issue was addressed with improved state management.

CVE-2023-23519: Meysam Firouzi @R00tkitSMM of Mbition Mercedes-Benz Innovation Lab, Yiğit Can YILMAZ (@yilmazcanyigit), and jzhu working with Trend Micro Zero Day Initiative

Impact: An app may be able to leak sensitive kernel state

CVE-2023-23500: Pan ZhenPeng (@Peterpan0927) of STAR Labs SG Pte. Ltd. (@starlabs_sg)

Impact: An app may be able to determine kernel memory layout

Description: An information disclosure issue was addressed by removing the vulnerable code.

CVE-2023-23502: Pan ZhenPeng (@Peterpan0927) of STAR Labs SG Pte. Ltd. (@starlabs_sg)

Impact: An app may be able to execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges

CVE-2023-23504: Adam Doupé of ASU SEFCOM

Mail Drafts

Impact: The quoted original message may be selected from the wrong email when forwarding an email from an Exchange account

Description: A logic issue was addressed with improved state management.

CVE-2023-23498: Jose Lizandro Luevano

CVE-2023-23503: an anonymous researcher

Impact: A user may send a text from a secondary eSIM despite configuring a contact to use a primary eSIM

CVE-2023-28208: freshman

Impact: Visiting a website may lead to an app denial-of-service

CVE-2023-23512: Adriatik Raci

Screen Time

Impact: An app may be able to access information about a user’s contacts

Description: A privacy issue was addressed with improved private data redaction for log entries.

CVE-2023-23505: Wojciech Reguła of SecuRing (wojciechregula.blog) and Csaba Fitzl (@theevilbit) of Offensive Security

CVE-2023-23511: Wojciech Regula of SecuRing (wojciechregula.blog), an anonymous researcher

Impact: Processing web content may lead to arbitrary code execution

WebKit Bugzilla: 248885 CVE-2023-32393: Francisco Alonso (@revskills)

Impact: Processing maliciously crafted web content may lead to arbitrary code execution

Description: The issue was addressed with improved checks.

WebKit Bugzilla: 245464 CVE-2023-23496: ChengGang Wu, Yan Kang, YuHao Hu, Yue Sun, Jiming Wang, JiKai Ren and Hang Shu of Institute of Computing Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences

WebKit Bugzilla: 248268 CVE-2023-23518: YeongHyeon Choi (@hyeon101010), Hyeon Park (@tree_segment), SeOk JEON (@_seokjeon), YoungSung Ahn (@_ZeroSung), JunSeo Bae (@snakebjs0107), Dohyun Lee (@l33d0hyun) of Team ApplePIE

WebKit Bugzilla: 248268 CVE-2023-23517: YeongHyeon Choi (@hyeon101010), Hyeon Park (@tree_segment), SeOk JEON (@_seokjeon), YoungSung Ahn (@_ZeroSung), JunSeo Bae (@snakebjs0107), Dohyun Lee (@l33d0hyun) of Team ApplePIE

Impact: An HTML document may be able to render iframes with sensitive user information

Description: This issue was addressed with improved iframe sandbox enforcement.

WebKit Bugzilla: 241753 CVE-2022-0108: Luan Herrera (@lbherrera_) 

Additional recognition

We would like to acknowledge Austin Emmitt (@alkalinesec), Senior Security Researcher at Trellix Advanced Research Center, for their assistance.

We would like to acknowledge Nick Stenning of Replicate for their assistance.

We would like to acknowledge Baibhav Anand Jha from ReconWithMe and Cristian Dinca of Tudor Vianu National High School of Computer Science, Romania for their assistance.

We would like to acknowledge Eliya Stein of Confiant for their assistance.

Information about products not manufactured by Apple, or independent websites not controlled or tested by Apple, is provided without recommendation or endorsement. Apple assumes no responsibility with regard to the selection, performance, or use of third-party websites or products. Apple makes no representations regarding third-party website accuracy or reliability. Contact the vendor for additional information.

Start a discussion in Apple Support Communities

How-To Geek

Safari is under attack, update your iphone and mac now.

You'll definitely want to install that new iPhone update.

Web browsers are complex applications and need to be constantly patched to keep malicious web pages from breaking out of their sandbox. Apple is now rolling out a fix for a Safari that addresses a critical security vulnerability.

Apple is now rolling out iOS 16.3.1, iPadOS 16.3.1, macOS Ventura 13.2.1, and updates for other platforms that address a handful of security problems. The iPhone, iPad, and Mac updates all include fixes for Safari's engine (WebKit) and the operating system kernel, while the macOS update has an additional security fix for Shortcuts .

The WebKit engine update fixes a bug where improper use of a certain JavaScript library (jsonwebtoken) could allow remote code execution on the host device. Apple said it is "aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited," meaning it may be used on some web pages. It was originally reported with the identifier CVE-2022-23529, but it has been officially withdrawn, as the National Vulnerability Database does not classify it as a software vulnerability.

The iOS and iPadOS updates also fixed a bug that allowed apps to execute arbitrary code with kernel-level privileges, which was discovered by Xinru Chi of Pangu Lab and Ned Williamson of Google Project Zero. The macOS update addresses an additional vulnerability that allowed apps to "observe unprotected user data" through Shortcuts, which apparently doesn't affect other platforms.

It's a good idea to update your iPhone , iPad , and Mac as soon as possible to have the latest security patches. Apple is also rolling out Safari 16.3.1 to macOS Big Sur and macOS Monterey, for computers that haven't been updated to Ventura yet (or are too old to run the latest release). You're vulnerable even if you don't use Safari itself -- all web browsers on iPhone and iPad use Safari's WebKit engine, and many Mac apps use the built-in rendering engine for displaying web content.

Source: GitHub , Apple ( iOS , macOS , Safari )

WebKit Features in Safari 16.3

Jan 23, 2023

by Jen Simmons

Today we are pleased to announce Safari 16.3, our first release of many coming this year. With it, WebKit provides multiple bug fixes and feature polish.

• Fixed MediaQueryList.matches to update the parent document layout for viewport-dependent media queries.
• Fixed transfers of min and max sizes for CSS aspect-ratio to be constrained by defined sizes.
• Fixed gap to be accounted for by using the unclamped subgrid track sizes to compute track positions.
• Fixed calculating block size to use the correct box-sizing.
• Fixed the transferred min and max sizes to be constrained by defined sizes.
• Fixed: Use intrinsic ratio of replaced elements when computing flex sizes.
• Fixed negative content sizes when using box-sizing: border-box with border and padding.
• Fixed setting scrollTop on a fixed element with overflow breaking scrolling on a page with overscroll-behavior: none .
• Fixed replaced elements with aspect ratio and size in one dimension to respect the min and max constraints in the opposite dimension.
• Fixed decompressing content downloaded via fetch() with Content-Encoding: gzip set.
• Fixed downloads served from a service worker that uses preload.
• Fixed: Added an error event when link preload fails synchronously.
• Fixed Cross-Origin-Embedder-Policy incorrectly blocking scripts.
• Fixed Authorization header used for subsequent 301 redirects when the request header changes.
• Fixed showing a dialog element when the target is a shadow host with a focus delegates.

Content Security Policy

• Added support for the prefetch-src directive.
• Fixed: Check for strict-dynamic in script-src and default-src directives.
• Fixed: Added an error event when Content Security Policy blocks inline stylesheets.
• Fixed web audio becoming garbled with switching from speakers to headphones.
• Fixed video track’s size settings in the second MediaStream created when the aspectRatio constraint is applied.
• Fixed showing Media Session API artwork.
• Fixed “A MediaStreamTrack ended due to a capture failure” error when selecting bluetooth headphones as an audio input device.
• Fixed WebVTT styles to apply with in-band tracks.
• Fixed alternate VPx codec names to support vp8.0 and vp9.0 .
• Fixed MouseClick offsetX and offsetY on a foreign object in an SVG to be relative to the element rather than relative to the SVG container.

We love hearing from you. Send a tweet to @webkit to share your thoughts on Safari 16.3. Find us on Mastodon at @[email protected] and @[email protected] . If you run into any issues, we welcome your feedback on Safari UI, or your WebKit bug report about web technology or Web Inspector. Filing issues really does make a difference.

Download the latest Safari Technology Preview to stay at the forefront of the web platform and to use the latest Web Inspector features. You can also read the Safari 16.3 release notes .

Updating to Safari 16.3

Safari 16.3 is available for macOS Ventura , macOS Monterey, macOS Big Sur, iPadOS 16 , and iOS 16 . You can update to Safari 16.3 on macOS Monterey or macOS Big Sur by going to System Preferences → Software Update → More info, and choosing to update Safari. To update macOS Ventura, iOS or iPadOS, go to Settings → General → Software Update.

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Big Safari & Kernel issues fixed in iOS 16.3.1, macOS 13.2.1 updates

16-inch MacBook Pro

Apple introduced small incremental updates across its software ecosystem on Monday, with iOS 16.3.1 , iPadOS 16.3.1 , and macOS 13.2.1 available to download by the public.

Following the release, Apple has published details about the security content of each update , with a lot of crossover between the three operating systems.

The first, a Kernel issue, impacts all three updates, and is described as one where "an app may be able to execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges. The fix addressed a "use after free issue" by adding "improved memory management.

Identified as CVE-2023-23514, the issue was declared by Xinru Chi of Pangu Lab and Ned Williamson of Google Project Zero.

The second, a WebKit problem, is listed as impacting all of the operating systems, as well as Safari itself. Under the issue, "processing maliciously crafted web content may lead to arbitrary code execution."

Apple adds that it is "aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited." It has since been fixed with "improved checks."

It is identified as CVE-2023-23529, and was found by "an anonymous researcher.

The last issue is for Shortcuts, and specifically affects macOS Ventura . Under the issue, an app "may be able to observe unprotected user data," which was fixed with "improved handling of temporary files."

CVE-2023-23522 was found by Wenchao Li and Xiaolong Bai of Alibaba Group.

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Apple releases iOS 16.3

After about a month of development—with a holiday break in between—Apple has released iOS 16.3. It contains several new features and fixes for all iPhones running iOS 16

Update 01/23/23: iOS 16.3 has released to all users.

iOS 16.3: New features

Advanced Data Protection goes worldwide: Originally released only for U.S. users, Advanced Data Protection is said to be available for all users worldwide in iOS 16.3, even though the release notes do not mention it.

Physical security keys for Apple ID: You can now secure your Apple ID with FIDO-certified physical key. Read more about Apple’s recent security improvements .

Support for HomePod (2nd gen): This release adds support for the just-announced 2nd-generation HomePod .

Black Unity collection: In celebration of Black History Month (February), Apple has a new Apple Watch face (along with watchOS 9.3) and wallpaper.

iOS 16.3: Release date

Apple released iOS 16.3 to all iPhones on Monday, January 23 at 10 am PT.

iOS 16.3: Release notes

iOS 16.3 is a hefty release, weighing in at 761.8MB. The official release notes are as follows.

– New Unity wallpaper honors Black history and culture in celebration of Black History Month – Security Keys for Apple ID allow users to strengthen the security of their account by requiring a physical security key as part of the two factor authentication sign in process on new devices – Support for HomePod (2nd generation) – Emergency SOS calls now require holding the side button with the up or down volume button and then releasing in order to prevent inadvertent emergency calls – Fixes an issue in Freeform where some drawing strokes created with Apple Pencil or your finger may not appear on shared boards – Addresses an issue where the wallpaper may appear black on the Lock Screen – Fixes an issue where horizontal lines may temporarily appear while waking up iPhone 14 Pro Max – Fixes an issue where the Home Lock Screen widget does not accurately display Home app status – Addresses an issue where Siri may not respond properly to music requests – Resolves issues where Siri requests in CarPlay may not be understood correctly

iOS 16.3: Security updates

Apple has included 12 security updates in iOS 16.3, including:

AppleMobileFileIntegrity

• Impact: An app may be able to access user-sensitive data
• Description: This issue was addressed by enabling hardened runtime.
• Impact: An app may be able to execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges
• Description: The issue was addressed with improved memory handling.
• Impact: An app may be able to bypass Privacy preferences
• Description: A logic issue was addressed with improved state management.

Screen Time

• Impact: An app may be able to access information about a user’s contacts
• Description: A privacy issue was addressed with improved private data redaction for log entries.
• Impact: Processing maliciously crafted web content may lead to arbitrary code execution

iOS 16.3: How to install

To install the iOS 16.3 update on your iPhone or iPad, first head over to the Settings app.

• Tap General .
• Tap the Software Update tab.
• Tap Download and Install .
• Enter your passcode.
• Tap Agree .
• Tap Agree again in the pop-up window.
• Wait for the update to download and follow the prompts to restart your iPhone.

Author: Jason Cross , Senior Editor

I have written about technology for my entire professional life - over 25 years. I enjoy learning about how complicated technology works and explaining it in a way anyone can understand.

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Should I update to iOS 16.3.1? Here's what Apple's newly updated software does

Have you updated your iPhone yet?

Apple has released iOS 16.3.1, an update to its operating system that fixes a security vulnerability that hackers may have exploited in the wild. 

According to Apple's support page, the bug was in  WebKit , the web browser engine used by Safari. The problem could allow an attacker to execute code on someone's device.

iOS 16.3.1 also fixes an issue in the Kernel at the core of the operating system that could allow an app to execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges. 

The update comes just weeks after the release of iOS 16.3 , which added the ability to use security keys for two-factor authentication. 

Apple said the issues affect iPhone 8 models and later. It also released  macOS 13.2.1, iPadOS 16.3.1 and Safari 16.3.1 security updates.

Your iPhone Face ID is vulnerable: Change the Face ID setting, or anyone can get into your iPhone

iOS 16.3: Here are the new features coming to your iPhone

What else is new in iOS 16.3.1?

iOS 16.3.1 promises to improve Crash Detection  on iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro models. 

Crash Detection is a feature that alerts emergency services if your iPhone 14 detects a "severe car crash" and is on by default. 

It also brings fixes to iCloud settings and Siri requests for Find My. 

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How to update your iPhone to iOS 16.3.1

To update your iPhone manually, go to Settings, click on General and select Software Update.

If you have your device set to automatic updates, your iPhone will download and install the update overnight while charging and connected to Wi-Fi. 

To install updates automatically, go to Settings, click on General, select Software Update and enable automatic updates.

Apple releases iOS 16.3 and macOS Ventura 13.2 with Apple ID FIDO key support, new wallpaper, major fixes, and more

Following several weeks of beta testing, iOS 16.3 and macOS Ventura 13.2 are now available to the public as stable releases. Here's what's new.

In late 2022, Apple publicly launched iOS 16 , iPadOS 16 , macOS Ventura , and watchOS 9 , providing users globally with a new iPhone Lock Screen, Stage Manager, and much more. Since then, the company has been developing these operating systems further, by working on smaller, subsequent updates. These releases aim to fix the leftover bugs and security vulnerabilities, while also introducing some of the new features that didn't ship with the main X.0 versions.

iOS 16.3, iPadOS 16.3, macOS Ventura 13.2, and watchOS 9.3 are now available to everyone around the world. Apple had been beta testing these versions for several weeks, and they've now reached the stability users typically expect. While they don't offer a ton of new visual changes and features, there's still a lot to unpack here!

In terms of new features, iOS 16.3 arguably is the most packed when compared to the other Apple OS updates we received today. For starters, potentially the most obvious change, we have a new Unity wallpaper that users can view or set by going to the wallpaper settings. While it's not exactly a major addition, getting more default wallpaper options to pick from is always a welcome change.

Another notable iOS 16.3 offering is FIDO security key support for Apple ID. This optional setting allows users to add another security layer by needing a physical key every time they sign in to their Apple accounts on a new device. And speaking of security and privacy, iOS 16.3 also enables Advanced Data Protection for users worldwide. The optional feature, which was initially limited to the U.S., end-to-end encrypts even more iCloud data types, such as photos, notes, and device backups.

Apart from the aforementioned changes, nothing much is new. Of course, as always, there are bug fixes as well, including ones for the iPhone 14 Pro Max display issue and the Freeform app not properly syncing certain elements on shared boards. You can read the full iOS 16.3 changelog below.

iOS 16.3 Changelog

This update includes the following enhancements and bug fixes:

• New Unity wallpaper honors Black history and culture in celebration of Black History Month
• Security Keys for Apple ID allow users to strengthen the security of their account by requiring a physical security key as part of the two factor authentication sign in process on new devices
• Support for HomePod (2nd generation)
• Emergency SOS calls now require holding the side button with the up or down volume button and then releasing in order to prevent inadvertent emergency calls
• Fixes an issue in Freeform where some drawing strokes created with Apple Pencil or your finger may not appear on shared boards
• Addresses an issue where the wallpaper may appear black on the Lock Screen
• Fixes an issue where horizontal lines may temporarily appear while waking up iPhone 14 Pro Max
• Fixes an issue where the Home Lock Screen widget does not accurately display Home app status
• Addresses an issue where Siri may not respond properly to music requests
• Resolves issues where Siri requests in CarPlay may not be understood correctly

iPadOS 16.3

When compared to iOS, iPadOS 16.3 doesn't come with many changes. For starers, the new Unity wallpaper is exclusive to the iPhone. So even if you update to the latest iPadOS version, you won't be able to view or set it as your iPad's wallpaper. Though, you do get FIDO security key support for Apple ID, Advanced Data Protection if the feature isn't already available to you, support for the new HomePod 2, and some bug fixes. You can view the official iPadOS 16.3 changelog below.

iPadOS 16.3 Changelog

macOS Ventura 13.2

Moving on to macOS Ventura 13.2. Similar to iPadOS, you don't get plenty of new changes when compared to iOS. Instead, you receive the same FIDO security key and Advanced Data Protection support. That's, expectedly, in addition to Mac-exclusive bug fixes. The full macOS Ventura 13.2 changelog is available below.

macOS Ventura 13.2 Changelog

This update introduces Security Keys for Apple ID, and includes other enhancements and bug fixes for your Mac.

• Security Keys for Apple ID allow users to strengthen the security of their account by requiring a physical security key to sign in
• Fixes an issue where VoiceOver may stop offering audio feedback while you are typing

watchOS 9.3

Lastly, apart from bug fixes, the only obvious change in watchOS 9.3 is a new Unity Mosaic watch face. The fresh face is very minimalistic and matches the aforementioned wallpaper included in iOS 16.3. However, it doesn't support any Apple Watch complications.

watchOS 9.3 Changelog

watchOS 9.3 includes new features, improvements and bug fixes, including new Unity Mosaic watch face to honor Black history and culture in celebration of Black History Month.

Now that this round of Apple OS updates has launched publicly, we can expect the next developer betas to land as soon as this week. While it's too early to tell, we hope that iOS 16.4 introduces support for Unicode 15.0 emoji and the Apple Music Classical app. With the 2022 operating systems starting to mature, we might not see plenty of new and exciting additions until iOS 17 and macOS 14 debut as developer betas in June.

What's your favorite iOS 16 feature? Let us know in the comments section below.

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Apple Releases iOS 16.3.1 With iCloud Fix, Crash Detection Optimizations and More

Apple today released iOS 16.3.1, a minor update for the iOS 16 operating system that first came out in September. iOS 16.3.1 comes over two weeks after the launch of iOS 16.3 , an update that added Security Keys for Apple ID and support for the new HomePod .

According to Apple's release notes, the iOS 16.3.1 update includes multiple bug fixes, addressing issues with iCloud and Siri requests for Find My , plus it adds more Crash Detection optimizations.

This update provides important bug fixes and security updates for your iPhone including: - iCloud settings may be unresponsive or incorrectly display if apps are using iCloud - Siri requests for Find My may not work - Crash Detection optimizations on iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro models

The ‌iCloud‌ settings fix may address an issue that could cause some people not to be able to toggle on automatic ‌iCloud‌ backups on the iPhone and the iPad , a problem that some users have been experiencing since the launch of iOS 16.3.

Crash Detection optimizations likely address ongoing issues with Crash Detection reported at ski resorts and amusement parks. At ski resorts in particular, emergency personnel have been receiving multiple accidental reports, which drain resources needed for actual emergencies. Apple has made multiple optimizations to Crash Detection to attempt to fix the problem.

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Top Rated Comments

You laugh, but "for fun", this morning, I decided to try that Legacy Update dealio ('https://legacyupdate.net') with my Windows XP UTM VM, and it's now roughly 12 hours later annnnnnnnnnnnnnd.... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Phone and TV and Home are done. Doing the Mac Air and the Watch now. I should time how long it takes to do the watch.

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Updating Safari 16.3.1 yields v16.3

Just as an FYI, I updated 3 (201) MBA's running 12.6.3 with the new Safari 16.3.1 update released 02.13.2023. Installed successfully but still shows as version 16.3. Now, I didn't write down the build number so it could be different. Says installed and no other updates available on all 3 machines. Install log shows ok.

Assuming someone forgot to add the correct version number in the app update (unless this is a server issue distributing the previous version.

MacBook Air 13″, macOS 12.6

Posted on Feb 13, 2023 2:11 PM

Similar questions

• (13 Feb 2023) Safari update for Mac OS Monterey...... I added today's (13 Feb 2023) Safari update for Mac OS Monterey. It now shows Safari Version 16.3 NOT 16.3.1. How can I tell if I have the latest updated version of Safari ? Is there a new build number? 496 2
• How do I get and install the update for Safari 16.3.1 for macOS Monterey? How do I get and install the update for Safari 16.3.1 for macOS Monterey? Software update in System Preferences does not find this update. It shows me at release 16.3, not 16.3.1. 455 6
• why there isn't the safari 13.1.3 version here? i can't find any information about that version on the Apple site and documentation, i just wanted to know the release date and the end of support for that specific version 203 2

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Feb 13, 2023 10:02 PM in response to Karesack

I don't think it should be called 16.3.1. It should be 16.3

I posted more about it here:

Shouldn't the Feb 13, 2023 Safari for Big Sur and Monterey be version 16.3 not 16.3.1?

Feb 13, 2023 8:02 PM in response to powerbook1701

No update to 16.3.1 for Safari

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Safari 16.3.1 downloads but won't install

• Thread starter LCD
• Start date Feb 14, 2023
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macrumors member

• Feb 14, 2023

With Safari 16.3 installed on my Mac, I first tried unsuccessfully to download Safari 16.3.1 on a 2018 Mac Mini with macOS Monterey 12.6.3 installed, then again after upgrading to macOS Ventura 13.2.1. When I searched for this problem I could find nothing but an article on jamf Nation Community's website named "Safari 16.3.1 Standalone Installers" that might be describing why I'm having this problem. It reads "Apple's Security update bulletins published today are calling it Safari 16.3.1, however Apple actually released new builds of Safari 16.3 with updated build numbers so you'll have to use an EA to extract the CFBundleVersion string from the Safari app bundle to figure out exactly what version of Safari you have installed". I guess it's just the two of us.  

macrumors 603

Here is the link for the update pkg Code: https://swcdn.apple.com/content/downloads/61/07/032-38754-A_I6L5FGHO4W/6vezgtgkabm4112wd26y1moii3kak18ykb/Safari16.3MontereyAuto.pkg  

Can you clarify what happens when you try to install it?  

• Feb 15, 2023

Apple has updated the page https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT213638 It's a different build of Safari 16.3, not Safari 16.3.1. "After installing this update, the build number for Safari 16.3 is 167614.4.6.11.6 on macOS Big Sur and 177614.4.6.11.6 on macOS Monterey."  

Thanks for that link bogdanw. I see I'm good to go. In Ventura now, I have Safari 16.3 build 18614.4.6.1.6. I was on the Apple website page on February 13 'About the security content of Safari 16.3' that you linked me to. Apple updated that page the next day so I'm not sure that the * containing the build information was there for me to see. Then yesterday Safari 16.3.1 appeared in the Software Update pane of Monterey's System Preferences. After that I saw a listing on Softpedia that shows Safari is now at 16.3.1 https://mac.softpedia.com/get/Internet-Utilities/Safari.shtml Hello Moderator Nermal. In Monterey the Safari 16.3.1 download seemed to go as usual but followed with what appeared to be no installation at all. I couldn't find in a search to see where that download is located in the Finder. And since I was only looking for a .1 added to the version number, I'm sorry that I didn't check if the build number had changed +.2 from the January 23 Safari 16.3 build 177614.4.6.11.4 to the February 13 build 177614.4.6.11.6.  

macrumors 68000

LCD said: I guess it's just the two of us. Click to expand...

Safari 16.3.1

Excellent. Thanks for that post KaliYoni. The TidBITS forum never came up in my search yesterday. I'll be going to them first from now on. So I'm down to just wondering why I can't get Safari 16.3.1 build 18614.4.6.11.6 to download into Ventura 13.2.1 (22D68) to replace Safari 16.3 build 18614.4.6.1.6 that came with upgrading to Ventura yesterday from Monterey's current release.  

LCD said: So I'm down to just wondering why I can't get Safari 16.3.1 build 18614.4.6.11.6 to download into Ventura 13.2.1 (22D68) to replace Safari 16.3 build 18614.4.6.1.6 that came with upgrading to Ventura yesterday from Monterey's current release. Click to expand...

You appear to be right bogdanw. But there’s a post in a forum on TidBITS about Safari 16.3.1 being available in Ventura with build number 18614.4.6.11.6. However I downloaded Ventura 13.2.1 yesterday which included Safari 16.3 with build 18614.4.6.1.6 and I have nothing in Settings to update Safari.  

I wouldn't worry about it. If Apple did change the build number, it’s probably just so that update can be pushed now as 16.3, instead of 16.3.1. Whatever build you have, the vulnerability is fixed.  

• Feb 16, 2023

12 hours ago this was posted by David C. in the TidBITS forum… And just to add more confusion, I just installed the Big Sur 11.7.4 update. Immediately after the installation, a Safari update became available. This one is version 16.3.1 (16614.4.6.11.7).  

Safari 16.3.1

Apple has released Safari 16.3.1 for macOS 12 Monterey and macOS 11 Big Sur with a patch for a single WebKit vulnerability that Apple says may have been actively exploited in the wild. In other words, install this update immediately! You can download Safari 16.3.1 only via Software Update. (Free, release notes , macOS 11+)

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Comments About Safari 16.3.1

Notable replies.

Hi. I just updated to Ventura 13.2.1. Safari remains at 16.3. I restarted to see whether that would prompt an update, but it didn’t. I’ve checked via Get Info, but the version seems to be 16.3. Any suggestions?

I’m having this issue too.

Probably a general glitch, then. Thanks for letting me know.

Safari 16.3.1 was released for Monterey and Big Sur. I think it remains at 16.3 for Ventura? David

Oh, I missed that. Thanks.

You have the Safari 16.3.1 update if your BuildVersion is Ventura = 18614.4.6.11.6 even if the version number says 16.3.

When I check “about Safari,” is says Version 16.3 (18614.4.6.1.6). I d on’t know how to check the build version for Ventura itself.

Sorry I wasn’t clear. I did mean the build number for Safari 16.3.1 for Ventura is 18614.4.6.11.6, so you still have Safari for Ventura 16.3.

You can get the build number for Ventura by checking “About this Mac” from the  menu and clicking on the version number in that dialog box. It should be macOS 13.2.1 (22D68) after today’s update.

Thank you. I really appreciate learning that. And the version # is as you said.

Thanks, Adam. I really rely on your articles.

According to MacRumors, 16.3 (18614.4.6.1.6) is the correct build number, not 18614.4.6.11.6 (I think the 11 is a typo). The previous Safari was 16.3 (18614.4.6.1.5).

You can find the MacRumors discussion at Apple Releases macOS 13.2.1 With Bug Fixes and Security Updates | MacRumors Forums .

Thanks for clarifying this for me. Better than Apple Support on Twitter could do, LOL. I’m comfortable I have the newest Safari then.

FWIW, the Safari update I just installed for Big Sur also reports itself as 16.3 (build number 16614.4.6.11.6).

I assume this the same release, compiled for Big Sur, since the build number is identical, not counting the second digit.

On my macOS Monterey system, the version number also lacks the “.1” used in the support article. In Safari’s About dialog: Version 16.3 (17614.4.6.11.6, 17614) .

My guess is the first two digits of the build number in the parentheses correspond to the major macOS version, since they’re 18 on Ventura, 17 on Monterey, and 16 on Big Sur.

Further to the version numbering issue, I compared two versions of Apple’s page about the security content of this release ( About the security content of Safari 16.3 - Apple Support ) - Google’s cached version dated 13 Feb and Apple’s current version dated 14 Feb. We can see that Apple removed the “.1” and added a footnote about build numbers.

MacRumors is correct. Sorry, I was misinformed by a usually reliable source.

Hey there, While everyone seems to be trying to decipher the real version number for the latest release of Safari (the deciphering required being an embarrassment for Apple, IMHO), I believe so far, no one has mentioned the latest copyright year (when invoking “About Safari”), is listed as “2022”, not “2023”, as it should be. An additional embarrassment for Apple.

Thanks very much Adam for this post and Al Varnell for your information. That was me (LCD) yesterday on Mac Rumors. My post at 6pm brought this problem I was having to their attention. At 1pm today a moderator in the forum named Nermal wrote that he knew nothing about it. Then KaliYoni wrote an hour ago about this forum here on TidBITS when I saw Al’s posts.

And just to add more confusion, I just installed the Big Sur 11.7.4 update. Immediately after the installation, a Safari update became available. This one is version 16.3.1 (16614.4.6.11.7).

On Big Sur 11.7.3 two updates are available: macOS 11.7.4 and Safari 16.3.1. Because 11.7.3 update had caused me a bunch of problems, I decided to install only the Safari update. Curiously the installer didn’t ask to quit Safari as normally expected. In fact after the installation nothing changed in Safari’s version number: Version 16.3 (16614.4.6.11.6, 16614) even after relaunching Safari.

I then downloaded the 16.3.1 installer here: https://swcdn.apple.com/content/downloads/62/14/032-51569-A_6C8JMC4NSY/3excb9qywqf00i87sfss53vk636jizy6ck/Safari16.3.1BigSurAuto.pkg and this one finally gave me Version 16.3.1 (16614.4.6.11.7, 16614)

Everything you said happened to me, but with more. The 11.7.4 update pane also offered Safari 16.3, which, to that level of detail, is what I had. Something around the declared size of the Safari update was downloaded, and the update proceeded normally (which means it took about 50 minutes).

Immediately after the installation, System Preferences sported a badge with a 1 in it. Minutes of “Checking for updates…” had no effect; it was not until after I restarted that Software Update was able (in short order) to offer Safari 16.3.1.

It’s like keeping system software up to date is a game of hide-and-seek or a treasure hunt. And then the prize is copyright 2022.

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