CVE-2024-44281
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 · uneditedAn out-of-bounds read was addressed with improved input validation. This issue is fixed in macOS Sequoia 15.1, macOS Sonoma 14.7.1, macOS Ventura 13.7.1. Parsing a file may lead to disclosure of user information.
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 confidenceAn out-of-bounds read vulnerability in macOS file parsing functionality allows disclosure of user information through specially crafted files. The issue was addressed with improved input validation during file parsing operations.
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< 13.7.1>= 14.0, < 14.7.1CVSS 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
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/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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Identify installed macOS versionRun 'sw_vers -productVersion' in Terminal or click Apple menu > About This MacAffected if Version is 13.x below 13.7.1, or 14.x below 14.7.1 (14.0 through 14.7 are affected)
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Confirm macOS release nameRun 'sw_vers -productVersionExtra' or check About This Mac for the release name (Ventura, Sonoma, or Sequoia)Affected if System runs Ventura (13.x) or Sonoma (14.x) rather than Sequoia (15.x)
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Verify patch statusCheck System Settings > General > Software Update for available updatesAffected if Any security update is pending or the installed version matches the affected ranges in step 1
A user is affected if their macOS version is 13.x below 13.7.1, or any 14.x version below 14.7.1, as the out-of-bounds read vulnerability exists in the file parsing component of those unpatched versions.
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 · scoped13.7.114.7.1
Update macOS to version 15.1 (Sequoia), 14.7.1 (Sonoma), or 13.7.1 (Ventura) or later to patch the vulnerability. Avoid opening untrusted files from unknown sources until systems are patched.
macOS Ventura 13.7.1 / macOS Sonoma 14.7.1 / macOS Sequoia 15.1 (depending on your current major version)
- Check current macOS version by clicking Apple menu > About This Mac
- Back up important data using Time Machine or another backup method
- For macOS Ventura (13.x) users: Update to macOS Ventura 13.7.1 via System Settings > General > Software Update
- For macOS Sonoma (14.x) users: Update to macOS Sonoma 14.7.1 via System Settings > General > Software Update
- For macOS Sequoia (15.x) users: Update to macOS Sequoia 15.1 via System Settings > General > Software Update
- Restart the system when prompted to complete the installation
- Verify the update was successful by checking About This Mac again
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2024-44281 — 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-2024-44281 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