CVE-2023-32426
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 · uneditedA logic issue was addressed with improved checks. This issue is fixed in macOS Ventura 13.3. An app may be able to gain root privileges.
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 logic flaw in macOS allowed a malicious application to bypass privilege escalation checks and gain root-level system access. The vulnerability was addressed through improved authorization validation in macOS Ventura 13.3.
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>= 13.0, < 13.3CVSS 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
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Confirm the operating system is macOSRun 'sw_vers -productVersion' in Terminal or check System Settings > About. This CVE applies only to macOS, not iOS, tvOS, or other Apple platforms.Affected if The system is running anything other than macOS (this vulnerability does not affect other Apple operating systems)
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Retrieve the installed macOS versionExecute 'sw_vers -productVersion' in Terminal to obtain the exact version number (for example: 13.2.1, 13.0.1, or 13.1.5)Affected if Not applicable - this step retrieves the version for the next check
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Compare version against vulnerable rangeCheck if the version returned is greater than or equal to 13.0.0 and less than 13.3.0. Any version in the 13.0.x, 13.1.x, or 13.2.x series is in the affected range.Affected if The installed version is 13.0.0 through 13.2.x (any minor version in these releases)
A system is affected if it is running macOS Ventura with version 13.0, 13.1, or 13.2 (any minor version), because the fix was included in macOS Ventura 13.3.
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 · scoped13.3
Apply macOS Ventura 13.3 or later security update. Organizations should ensure endpoint management tools deploy this patch to all affected macOS systems.
macOS Ventura 13.3 or later
- Back up your Mac using Time Machine or another backup solution before proceeding
- Ensure your Mac is connected to power during the update process
- Open System Settings (System Preferences on older macOS versions)
- Navigate to General > Software Update
- Click "Check for Update" or allow automatic checking
- If macOS Ventura 13.3 or later is available, click "Download and Install"
- Wait for the download to complete - this may take significant time depending on your internet connection
- When prompted, click "Restart Now" to begin the installation
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing2.0 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 $1,696.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-32426 — 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-2023-32426 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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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.
- 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