CVE-2023-28826VulnerabilityPublished 8 Mar 2024Updated 4 Nov 2025

CVE-2023-28826: Apple macOS · An app may be able to access sensitive user data

Affects Apple macOSSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 5.5 Medium · fixed in 16.7.6 : update Apple macOS when convenient.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 08:30 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

5.5Medium

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 16% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 16.7.6

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

Attack Vector: Local
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: Required
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: None
Availability: None

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Local: The vulnerable component is not bound to the network stack and the attacker’s path is via read/write/execute capabilities. Either: the attacker exploits the vulnerability by accessing the target system locally (e.g., keyboard, console), or remotely (e.g., SSH); or the attacker relies on User Interaction by another person to perform actions required to exploit the vulnerability (e.g., tricking a legitimate user into opening a malicious document).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: None: The attacker is unauthorized prior to attack, and therefore does not require any access to settings or files to carry out an attack.
User Interaction: Required: Successful exploitation of this vulnerability requires a user to take some action before the vulnerability can be exploited.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: High: There is total loss of confidentiality, resulting in all resources within the impacted component being divulged to the attacker. Alternatively, access to only some restricted information is obtained, but the disclosed information presents a direct, serious impact.
Integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the impacted component.
Availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 8 Mar 2024
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

AI-suggested

European organizations should implement the following specific mitigations: 1) Immediately deploy the Apple security updates macOS Monterey 12.7.4, Ventura 13.6.5, Sonoma 14.1, and iOS/iPadOS 16.7.6 or later to all affected devices. 2) Enforce strict application control policies using Apple’s Endpoint Security Framework or Mobile Device Management (MDM) solutions to restrict installation of untrusted or unsigned apps. 3) Educate users about the risks of installing unknown applications and the importance of avoiding social engineering attacks that could lead to installing malicious apps. 4) Monitor macOS devices for unusual app behavior or unauthorized access attempts to sensitive data using endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools tailored for macOS. 5) Review and tighten app permissions and privacy settings to limit access to sensitive data where possible. 6) Conduct regular audits of installed applications and remove unnecessary or suspicious software. 7) Integrate vulnerability management processes to ensure timely patching of Apple devices in the enterprise environment.

Description

This issue was addressed with improved redaction of sensitive information. This issue is fixed in iOS 16.7.6 and iPadOS 16.7.6, macOS Monterey 12.7.4, macOS Sonoma 14.1, macOS Ventura 13.6.5. An app may be able to access sensitive user data.

Impact

For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2023-28826 is the potential unauthorized disclosure of sensitive user data on macOS devices. This can lead to privacy violations, leakage of confidential corporate information, and potential compliance issues under GDPR and other data protection regulations. Since the vulnerability does not affect data integrity or availability, the risk is focused on confidentiality breaches. Organizations with employees using macOS devices for handling sensitive or regulated data are particularly at risk. The requirement for local access and user interaction reduces the likelihood of remote exploitation but does not eliminate insider threats or risks from malicious apps distributed via social engineering. The exposure could undermine trust in Apple devices within enterprise environments and complicate compliance with European data protection mandates. Additionally, sectors such as finance, healthcare, and government, which handle highly sensitive data, may face increased risks if devices remain unpatched.

CWE-200Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor (opens in a new tab)
Class weaknessLikelihood of exploit: HighCWE Top 25 (2025): #20OWASP Top 10 A01:2025: Broken Access Control (opens in a new tab)
The product exposes sensitive information to an actor that is not explicitly authorized to have access to that information.
MITRE discourages mapping vulnerabilities to this broad entry; the root cause is usually a more specific weakness.
Architecture and Design · Separation of Privilege
Compartmentalize the system to have "safe" areas where trust boundaries can be unambiguously drawn. Do not allow sensitive data to go outside of the trust boundary and always be careful when interfacing with a compartment outside of the safe area.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Error Handling (opens in a new tab)
Logging (opens in a new tab)
Authorization (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V8.3.4 (opens in a new tab)
V14.3.3 (opens in a new tab)
V7.3.3 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Subverting Environment Variable Values (opens in a new tab)
ICMP Echo Request Ping (opens in a new tab)
TCP SYN Scan (opens in a new tab)
Enumerate Mail Exchange (MX) Records (opens in a new tab)
DNS Zone Transfers (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

Community reviews

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 4 Nov 2025, 18:32 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-200

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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