dbcve.org
macOSOperating system · Apple

CVE-2026-28817

HIGH · 8.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-03-25
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 14.8.5 / 15.7.5 or later.
See remediation →
86/100
Remediation priority · High
No privileges 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
A race condition was addressed with improved state handling. This issue is fixed in macOS Sequoia 15.7.5, macOS Sonoma 14.8.5, macOS Tahoe 26.4. A sandboxed process may be able to circumvent sandbox restrictions.

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 confidence

A race condition in macOS sandbox logic allows a sandboxed process to escape sandbox restrictions and potentially access resources outside its allowed permissions. The vulnerability stems from improper state handling during sandbox enforcement, which can be exploited by a malicious sandboxed application.

MitigationApply the appropriate macOS security update (macOS Sequoia 15.7.5, macOS Sonoma 14.8.5, or macOS Tahoe 26.4) to address the race condition in sandbox state handling.

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, < 14.8.5>= 15.0, < 15.7.5>= 26.0, < 26.4

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
High
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/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 System Settings > About to see the exact version number
    Affected if Version is 14.0-14.8.4, 15.0-15.7.4, or 26.0-26.3 (any version below the fixed releases)
  2. Verify macOS build number
    Run 'system_profiler SPSoftwareDataType' or 'uname -a' to get the full build string (e.g., 24A348)
    Affected if Build number is earlier than the security update builds for your major version
  3. Check if sandbox is actively used
    Run 'ps -ax | grep sandboxd' to see if the sandbox daemon is running, or inspect running processes from App Store apps which run sandboxed by default
    Affected if Sandbox is enabled and the system is running an affected macOS version
  4. Identify sandboxed applications in use
    Run 'ls -la /private/var/db/sandbox' or check Application Sandbox status via 'codesign -d --entitlements - /Applications/App Store.app' (substitute any sandboxed app)
    Affected if Any sandboxed applications are running on an affected macOS version

A system is affected if it runs macOS 14.0-14.8.4, 15.0-15.7.4, or 26.0-26.3 and has sandboxed processes active, as the race condition in sandbox state handling can be exploited to escape restrictions.

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 14.8.5 / 15.7.5 / 26.4 or later
Fixed in 14.8.515.7.526.4
Interim mitigation

Apply the appropriate macOS security update (macOS Sequoia 15.7.5, macOS Sonoma 14.8.5, or macOS Tahoe 26.4) to address the race condition in sandbox state handling.

Recommended fix High confidence

macOS Sonoma 14.8.5, macOS Sequoia 15.7.5, or macOS Tahoe 26.4 (depending on your current macOS version)

  1. 1. Back up your Mac using Time Machine or another backup solution before starting the update
  2. 2. Connect your Mac to power to ensure the update process is not interrupted
  3. 3. Open System Settings (or System Preferences on older macOS versions)
  4. 4. Click on General in the sidebar
  5. 5. Click on Software Update
  6. 6. Wait for macOS to check for available updates
  7. 7. If macOS 14.8.5 (Sonoma), 15.7.5 (Sequoia), or 26.4 (Tahoe) is available, click Update Now to install the security update
  8. 8. Follow the on-screen instructions and allow the Mac to restart as needed
Caveat Standard macOS minor version updates typically preserve user data and settings; however, always backup before updating as a precaution

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

Fix this in macOS Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,390
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,224.

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-2026-28817 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