CVE-2025-43461
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 · uneditedThis issue was addressed with improved validation of symlinks. This issue is fixed in macOS Tahoe 26.1. An app may be able to access protected user data.
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 symlink validation vulnerability in macOS Tahoe 26.1 allowed applications to bypass security restrictions and access protected user data through improperly validated symbolic links. The fix implements improved validation of symlinks to prevent unauthorized access to protected files.
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< 26.1CVSS 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
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/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 displayed is less than 26.1 (e.g., 26.0, 25.x, 24.x, etc.)
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Confirm macOS build number matches Tahoe releaseRun: uname -a to see kernel details, or check System Settings > About to verify this is the Tahoe releaseAffected if The system is running a macOS version earlier than 26.1 regardless of build variant
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Verify symlink handling in protected directoriesInspect if symlinks exist in or point to ~/Library, ~/Documents, or other user-protected directories using: ls -la ~ | grep '^l'Affected if Symlinks are present in or pointing to protected user directories and the macOS version is below 26.1
Your environment is affected if the installed macOS version is earlier than 26.1, since the vulnerability exists in versions prior to the improved symlink validation fix.
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 · scoped26.1
Update to macOS Tahoe 26.1 or later to obtain the improved symlink validation. No other specific configuration changes are mentioned in the available documentation.
macOS Tahoe 26.1
- Check the current macOS version by going to Apple menu > About This Mac
- If the version is earlier than macOS Tahoe 26.1, back up important data
- Upgrade to macOS Tahoe 26.1 or later via System Settings > General > Software Update
- After upgrading, verify the new version is 26.1 or higher
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing3.0 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 $2,224.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-43461 — 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-2025-43461 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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