CVE-2021-30833
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedThis issue was addressed with improved checks. This issue is fixed in macOS Monterey 12.0.1. Unpacking a maliciously crafted archive may allow an attacker to write arbitrary files.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · moderate confidenceA path traversal vulnerability in macOS Monterey 12.0.1 allows maliciously crafted archive files to write arbitrary files to the filesystem during extraction by leveraging '..' directory traversal sequences in archive entry paths.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data>= 10.15, < 10.15.7= 10.15.7< 12.0.1>= 11.6, < 11.6.1CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check your macOS versionGo to Apple menu > About This Mac to view the macOS version numberAffected if The version is 10.15.7, or between 10.15 and 10.15.6, or 11.6.0, or between 11.0 and 11.6.0, or below 12.0.1 (for Monterey installations)
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Identify the Archive Utility versionLocate /System/Library/CoreServices/Archives/Archive Utility.app, right-click and choose Get Info to view the versionAffected if The Archive Utility version corresponds to an affected macOS version listed above
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Verify archive extraction behaviorExtract a test archive containing entries with '../' path sequences using the built-in Archive Utility (double-click or right-click > Open)Affected if Files are extracted outside the destination directory, indicating the path traversal vulnerability is present
You are affected if you are running macOS 10.15.7 or any version from 10.15 to 10.15.6, or macOS 11.6.0 or any version from 11.0 to 11.6.0, and you use the built-in Archive Utility to extract archive files.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
dbcve · scoped10.15.711.6.112.0.1
Update macOS to version 12.0.1 or later to apply the patched archive extraction functionality.
macOS Monterey 12.0.1 (or macOS 11.6.1 for Big Sur / macOS 10.15.7 for Catalina)
- Verify current macOS version by clicking Apple menu > About This Mac
- If running macOS 11.x (Big Sur), upgrade to macOS 11.6.1 or later via System Preferences > Software Update
- If running macOS 10.15.x (Catalina), upgrade to macOS 10.15.7 or later via System Preferences > Software Update
- For systems capable of running macOS 12, upgrade to macOS Monterey 12.0.1 or later
- After upgrade, verify the system is running a fixed version by checking About This Mac
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,200.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2021-30833 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-30833 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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