dbcve.org
Mac Os XOperating system · Apple

CVE-2022-32831

HIGH · 7.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-09-23
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 10.15.7 / 11.6.8 or later.
See remediation →
74/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
No privileges

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 · unedited
An out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved bounds checking. This issue is fixed in Security Update 2022-005 Catalina, macOS Big Sur 11.6.8, macOS Monterey 12.5. Processing a maliciously crafted AppleScript binary may result in unexpected termination or disclosure of process memory.

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 · high confidence

An out-of-bounds read vulnerability exists in macOS AppleScript binary parsing that allows a specially crafted malicious AppleScript binary to read memory beyond allocated buffers, potentially exposing sensitive process memory or causing application termination.

MitigationApply the appropriate macOS security update: Security Update 2022-005 for Catalina, macOS Big Sur 11.6.8, or macOS Monterey 12.5.

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
Mac Os XOperating system
Affected:= 10.15.7
macOSOperating system
Affected:< 10.15.7>= 11.0, < 11.6.8>= 12.0, < 12.5= 10.15.7

CVSS 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
High
Integrity
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:H

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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check installed macOS version
    Run 'sw_vers -productVersion' in Terminal to get the exact macOS version number
    Affected if The version falls within 10.15.7, 11.0-11.6.7, or 12.0-12.4
  2. Verify AppleScript interpreter availability
    Run 'which osascript' or 'which scptd' to confirm AppleScript binaries exist on the system
    Affected if The AppleScript interpreter is present and the version from step 1 is vulnerable
  3. Check for untrusted AppleScript binary execution
    Review any scripts or applications that process AppleScript binaries from untrusted sources, or check recent .scpt binary files downloaded from the internet using 'ls -la' in user download directories
    Affected if The system runs AppleScript binaries from untrusted or unknown sources and the macOS version is vulnerable
  4. Confirm security update presence
    Run 'system_profiler SPInstallHistoryDataType | grep -i 2022-005' for Catalina, or check Software Update preferences for the specific security update
    Affected if The security update is NOT installed and the macOS version matches the affected ranges

A system is affected if it runs macOS 10.15.7, 11.0-11.6.7, or 12.0-12.4 and processes AppleScript binaries without the corresponding security update installed.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 10.15.7 / 11.6.8 / 12.5 or later
Fixed in 10.15.711.6.812.5
Interim mitigation

Apply the appropriate macOS security update: Security Update 2022-005 for Catalina, macOS Big Sur 11.6.8, or macOS Monterey 12.5.

Recommended fix High confidence

macOS Monterey 12.5 (or Big Sur 11.6.8, or Security Update 2022-005 for Catalina)

  1. Identify the current macOS version by clicking the Apple menu and selecting About This Mac
  2. For macOS Monterey (12.0-12.4): Install macOS Monterey 12.5 or later via System Preferences > Software Update
  3. For macOS Big Sur (11.0-11.6.7): Install macOS Big Sur 11.6.8 or later via System Preferences > Software Update
  4. For macOS Catalina (10.15.7): Install Security Update 2022-005 Catalina via System Preferences > Software Update
  5. Alternatively, manually download the appropriate security update from the Apple Support website for your specific macOS version

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Mac Os X Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA0.5 h
3.5 hours of engineering $750
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2022-32831 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • 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
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data