macOSOperating system · Apple

CVE-2025-46310

MEDIUM · 6.0 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-02-11
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 14.8.4 / 15.7.4 or later.
See remediation →
62/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Zero-click

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 15.7.4, macOS Sonoma 14.8.4, macOS Tahoe 26. An attacker with root privileges may be able to delete protected system 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 state management flaw in macOS allowed attackers with root privileges to delete protected system files that should have been shielded from even administrative removal. The vulnerability stemmed from improper handling of file protection state, enabling root users to bypass intended safeguards on critical system files.

MitigationApply the macOS security updates: Sequoia 15.7.4, Sonoma 14.8.4, or Tahoe 26 (depending on macOS version). For managed endpoints, deploy via standard patch management processes.

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:>= 14.0, < 14.8.4>= 15.0, < 15.7.4

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
High
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H

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
    Run 'sw_vers -productVersion' in Terminal, or click Apple menu > About This Mac to view the version number
    Affected if The version is 14.0 through 14.8.3, or 15.0 through 15.7.3 (any version in the ranges >= 14.0 < 14.8.4 or >= 15.0 < 15.7.4)
  2. Confirm macOS release name
    Run 'sw_vers -productVersionExtra' or check About This Mac to identify if the system is Sonoma (14.x) or Sequoia (15.x)
    Affected if Running Sonoma 14.0-14.8.3 or Sequoia 15.0-15.7.3 indicates a potentially vulnerable version
  3. Verify security update status
    Check System Settings > General > Software Update for available updates, or run 'system_profiler SPSoftwareDataType' to see installed security updates
    Affected if Security updates KB or build numbers corresponding to 14.8.4, 15.7.4, or later are NOT installed

The system is affected if it runs any macOS Sonoma version between 14.0 and 14.8.3, or any macOS Sequoia version between 15.0 and 15.7.3, without the corresponding security patches applied.

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 14.8.4 / 15.7.4 or later
Fixed in 14.8.415.7.4
Interim mitigation

Apply the macOS security updates: Sequoia 15.7.4, Sonoma 14.8.4, or Tahoe 26 (depending on macOS version). For managed endpoints, deploy via standard patch management processes.

Recommended fix High confidence

macOS Sonoma 14.8.4+ or macOS Sequoia 15.7.4+ (or macOS Tahoe 26 if applicable)

  1. Back up important data before updating
  2. Go to System Settings > General > Software Update
  3. Click 'Check for Update' or enable automatic updates
  4. Download and install macOS Sonoma 14.8.4 (or later) or macOS Sequoia 15.7.4 (or later) depending on your current macOS version
  5. Restart the system when prompted to complete the installation
Caveat Standard macOS upgrade considerations apply - review App Store apps for compatibility and back up data before upgrading

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-2025-46310 — 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 sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-46310 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