dbcve.org
macOSOperating system · Apple

CVE-2025-24096

MEDIUM · 5.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-01-27
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 15.3 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
This issue was addressed through improved state management. This issue is fixed in macOS Sequoia 15.3. A malicious app may be able to access arbitrary files.

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 vulnerability in macOS allowed a malicious application to bypass security restrictions and access arbitrary files on the system through improper state management. The flaw was addressed via improved state management in macOS Sequoia 15.3.

MitigationUpgrade to macOS Sequoia 15.3 or later to apply the vendor patch that addresses the improper state management allowing unauthorized file access.

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:< 15.3

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
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 checks

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

  1. Check installed macOS version
    Click Apple menu > About This Mac, or run 'sw_vers -productVersion' in Terminal
    Affected if Version is below 15.3 (e.g., 15.2, 15.1, 15.0, or any earlier major version)
  2. Confirm macOS release name
    Run 'sw_vers -productVersionExtra' in Terminal or check the About This Mac window for the release name
    Affected if Running any macOS version prior to Sequoia 15.3, including Sonoma, Ventura, Monterey, or older releases

If the installed macOS version is anything below 15.3, the improper state management vulnerability that allows unauthorized file access is present in the environment.

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 15.3 or later
Fixed in 15.3
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to macOS Sequoia 15.3 or later to apply the vendor patch that addresses the improper state management allowing unauthorized file access.

Recommended fix High confidence

macOS Sequoia 15.3

  1. Back up important data before updating the system
  2. Open System Settings (or System Preferences on older macOS)
  3. Navigate to General > Software Update
  4. Ensure your Mac is connected to power and the internet
  5. Click 'Check for Update' or allow automatic update check
  6. If macOS Sequoia 15.3 is available, click 'Download and Install'
  7. Follow on-screen prompts and allow the Mac to restart to complete the update

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

Fix this in macOS Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,420
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,272.

Scan for this in your stack

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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-2025-24096 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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