CVE-2023-38607
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 · uneditedThe issue was addressed with improved handling of caches. This issue is fixed in macOS Sonoma 14. An app may be able to modify Printer settings.
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 local privilege escalation vulnerability in macOS allowed an application to improperly modify printer settings due to insufficient handling of caches. The vulnerability was patched in macOS Sonoma 14 with improved cache handling controls.
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< 14.0CVSS 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 the installed macOS versionRun 'sw_vers -productVersion' in Terminal or go to Apple menu > About This MacAffected if The version is below 14.0 (any 13.x, 12.x, 11.x, etc.)
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Verify printer services are activeCheck if the 'cups' (Common Unix Printing System) service is running by running 'lpstat -t' in TerminalAffected if Printer services are enabled and the macOS version is below 14.0
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Inspect printer configurationsReview /etc/cups/ printers.conf or access Printers & Scanners in System Settings to confirm any configured printersAffected if Any printers are configured and the system is running a macOS version below 14.0
The environment is affected if macOS version is below 14.0 and printer services or printer configurations exist on the system.
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 · scoped14.0
Update macOS devices to Sonoma 14 or later to remediate this vulnerability. In enterprise environments, test printer functionality after applying the OS update.
macOS Sonoma 14.0 or later
- Back up your Mac using Time Machine or another backup method before upgrading
- Open System Settings (or System Preferences on older macOS versions)
- Navigate to General > Software Update
- Allow the system to check for updates
- If macOS Sonoma 14.0 or later is available, click Download and Install
- Follow the on-screen prompts to complete the installation
- Restart your Mac when prompted to apply the update
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-38607 — 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-2023-38607 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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