CVE-2024-44303
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 checks. This issue is fixed in macOS Sequoia 15.1. A malicious application may be able to modify protected parts of the file system.
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 confidenceThis is a macOS vulnerability (CVE-2024-44303) where a malicious application could bypass file system protections and modify protected parts of the file system. The flaw was addressed with improved authorization checks. Fixed in macOS Sequoia 15.1.
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< 15.1CVSS 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
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/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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Check installed macOS versionOpen Terminal and run: sw_vers -productVersionAffected if The version returned is less than 15.1 (e.g., 15.0, 14.x, 13.x, etc.)
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Verify system integrity protection statusRun: csrutil status (requires recovery mode to check, or check /System/Library/SystemConfiguration/com.apple.coreservices.diagnostics/ for SIP status)Affected if SIP is disabled - while the version check is primary, disabling SIP could increase exposure to this bypass
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Confirm application sandbox statusCheck if any untrusted third-party applications have been granted Full Disk Access in System Settings > Privacy & Security > Full Disk AccessAffected if Untrusted applications have Full Disk Access permissions on a vulnerable macOS version
If the installed macOS version is below 15.1, the system is affected by this file system protection bypass vulnerability.
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 · scoped15.1
Apply macOS Sequoia 15.1 or later security update to affected systems to patch the file system protection bypass.
macOS Sequoia 15.1
- Back up your Mac before upgrading
- Ensure your Mac is compatible with macOS Sequoia 15.1
- Open System Settings > General > Software Update
- Click 'Update Now' or 'Upgrade Now' to install macOS Sequoia 15.1
- Alternatively, download macOS Sequoia 15.1 from the Mac App Store and run the installer manually
- After upgrading, verify the system is running version 15.1 or later
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing4.0 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 $2,784.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2024-44303 — 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-2024-44303 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data