CVE-2025-24263
📋 TL;DR
This CVE describes a macOS privacy vulnerability where applications could access unprotected user data stored in insecure locations. The issue affects macOS systems before Sequoia 15.4, potentially exposing sensitive information to malicious or poorly-behaved applications.
💻 Affected Systems
- macOS
📦 What is this software?
Macos by Apple
macOS is Apple's desktop and laptop operating system powering Mac computers used by millions of professionals, developers, creative professionals, and enterprise users worldwide. Built on a Unix foundation with the Darwin kernel and modern Cocoa frameworks, macOS delivers a seamless ecosystem integr...
Learn more about Macos →⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Malicious applications could exfiltrate sensitive user data including passwords, personal documents, or authentication tokens stored in unprotected locations.
Likely Case
Applications with legitimate access could inadvertently or intentionally read user data they shouldn't have access to, violating user privacy expectations.
If Mitigated
With proper application sandboxing and security controls, only specifically authorized applications could access sensitive data.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires an application to be installed and executed on the target system. The vulnerability involves reading data from unprotected storage locations.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: macOS Sequoia 15.4
Vendor Advisory: https://support.apple.com/en-us/122373
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open System Settings 2. Click General 3. Click Software Update 4. Install macOS Sequoia 15.4 update 5. Restart when prompted
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Application Sandboxing Enforcement
allUse macOS privacy controls to restrict application access to sensitive data locations
Limit Application Installation
allOnly install applications from trusted sources and the Mac App Store
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict application allowlisting to prevent unauthorized applications from running
- Use full disk encryption and ensure sensitive data is stored in encrypted containers or secure keychain
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check macOS version: If version is earlier than Sequoia 15.4, the system is vulnerableCheck Version:
sw_versVerify Fix Applied:
Verify macOS version is 15.4 or later and check that sensitive data locations have proper protection📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual application access patterns to sensitive data directories
- Privacy permission requests from unexpected applications
Network Indicators:
- Unexpected outbound data transfers from applications that shouldn't have sensitive data access
SIEM Query:
source="macos" (event_type="file_access" AND path CONTAINS "/Users/" AND NOT user_action="authorized")