dbcve.org
macOSOperating system · Apple

CVE-2023-40433

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-01-10
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 13.3 or later.
See remediation →
58/100
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
A logic issue was addressed with improved checks. This issue is fixed in macOS Ventura 13.3. An app may bypass Gatekeeper checks.

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 Ventura allowed a malicious application to bypass Gatekeeper security checks, which normally verify that downloaded apps are signed and from trusted developers before allowing execution.

MitigationUpdate macOS to version 13.3 or later to receive the Apple security fix.

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:< 13.3

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
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 checks

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

  1. Check installed macOS version
    Open Terminal and run: sw_vers -productVersion
    Affected if The version displayed is less than 13.3 (for example, 13.0, 13.1, or 13.2)
  2. Confirm macOS Ventura identity
    Run: sw_vers -productName && sw_vers -productVersion
    Affected if The product name shows macOS Ventura AND the version is below 13.3
  3. Check for security update patches
    Open System Settings > Privacy & Security > About, or run: defaults read /System/Library/CoreServices/SystemVersion.plist ProductVersion
    Affected if The system shows it has not received the macOS 13.3 security update

The system is affected by CVE-2023-40433 if it runs any version of macOS Ventura prior to 13.3, as the Gatekeeper bypass vulnerability exists in those unpatched versions.

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 13.3 or later
Fixed in 13.3
Interim mitigation

Update macOS to version 13.3 or later to receive the Apple security fix.

Recommended fix High confidence

macOS Ventura 13.3

  1. Back up all important data on the Mac before proceeding with the update
  2. Ensure the Mac is connected to a power source to prevent interruption during the update
  3. Open System Settings (or System Preferences on older macOS versions)
  4. Navigate to the Software Update section
  5. Check for available updates - the system will detect macOS Ventura 13.3 or later
  6. Click to download and install the update
  7. Allow the installation to complete and the Mac to restart
Caveat Upgrading to a new major macOS version may affect compatibility with older applications; verify critical software compatibility before proceeding

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

Fix this in macOS Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
5.0 hours of engineering $890
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,424.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-40433 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

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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-2023-40433 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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