dbcve.org
macOSOperating system · Apple

CVE-2022-32902

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-02-27
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 11.7 / 12.6 or later.
See remediation →
57/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Zero-click

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
A logic issue was addressed with improved state management. This issue is fixed in macOS Ventura 13, macOS Monterey 12.6, macOS Big Sur 11.7. An app may be able to bypass Privacy preferences.

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 confidence

A logic flaw in macOS privacy preferences allowed a malicious application to bypass Privacy preferences through improper state management. The vulnerability enabled apps to potentially access protected system resources without proper user authorization.

MitigationApply vendor patches (macOS Ventura 13, Monterey 12.6, or Big Sur 11.7) to address the state management logic flaw that enables privacy preference bypass.

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
macOSOperating system
Affected:>= 11.0, < 11.7>= 12.0.0, < 12.6

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
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
High
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/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 checks

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

  1. Check installed macOS version
    Run 'sw_vers -productVersion' in Terminal or go to Apple menu > About This Mac
    Affected if The version is 11.0 to 11.6.x, or 12.0.0 to 12.5.x (any version before 11.7 or 12.6)
  2. Confirm Privacy preferences are configured
    Open System Preferences > Security & Privacy > Privacy tab, or System Settings > Privacy & Security on macOS Ventura and later
    Affected if Privacy preference panes exist and are accessible (the bypass affects these panels)
  3. Audit application access logs for anomalies
    Check system logs via 'log show --predicate 'subsystem == "com.apple.privacy"' --last 30d' for unusual access patterns without user consent prompts
    Affected if Logs show applications accessing protected resources (camera, microphone, contacts, etc.) without corresponding user authorization events

You are affected if your macOS version is 11.0-11.6.x or 12.0.0-12.5.x, as the logic flaw in Privacy preferences allows unauthorized access to protected system resources.

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 11.7 / 12.6 or later
Fixed in 11.712.6
Interim mitigation

Apply vendor patches (macOS Ventura 13, Monterey 12.6, or Big Sur 11.7) to address the state management logic flaw that enables privacy preference bypass.

Recommended fix High confidence

macOS Big Sur 11.7 or macOS Monterey 12.6 (minimum); macOS Ventura 13 recommended

  1. 1. Back up your Mac using Time Machine or another backup method before proceeding with the upgrade.
  2. 2. Connect your Mac to power to ensure the update is not interrupted.
  3. 3. Open System Preferences (System Settings on macOS Ventura and later).
  4. 4. Navigate to Software Update or check for updates.
  5. 5. Install the available macOS update: For macOS 11.x users, install macOS Big Sur 11.7 or later; for macOS 12.x users, install macOS Monterey 12.6 or later; alternatively, upgrade to macOS Ventura 13 if compatible with your device.
  6. 6. Restart your Mac when prompted to complete the installation.
  7. 7. After restarting, verify the update by going to Apple menu > About This Mac to confirm the version matches the expected fixed release.
Caveat Standard macOS upgrade considerations apply: some older applications may not be compatible with newer macOS versions; ensure backups exist before upgrading

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

Fix this in macOS Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,980
Get the upgrade done

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Scan for this in your stack

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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-2022-32902 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