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VulnerabilityPublished Updated

CVE-2024-23285: Apple macOS · An app may be able to create symlinks to protected regions of the disk

Affects Apple macOSSource CVE Database V5

0

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 7.8 High · fixed in 14.4 : patch Apple macOS soon.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 09:15 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score
7.8High
How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.
EPSS
0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 15% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch
Available – fixed in 14.4
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Exploitation evidence

  1. Disclosed: evidence found.

    CVE published 8 Mar 2024

  2. Detectable: no evidence on record.

    No public nuclei template indexed

  3. Weaponised: no evidence on record.

    No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB

  4. Exploited in the wild: no evidence on record.

    Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation

  5. Observed by OffSeq 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.

What to do

Affected software

ProductAffectedFixed in
Apple macOSAffected
  • =0
Fixed in–

AI-suggested

Apply the official update to macOS Sonoma 14.4 or later, which includes the fix for this vulnerability. Apple has addressed the issue with improved symlink handling. No additional mitigation steps are indicated by the vendor advisory. Systems running earlier versions remain vulnerable until updated.

Description

CVE-2024-23285 is a high-severity vulnerability in Apple macOS that allowed an application to create symbolic links (symlinks) to protected regions of the disk. This could potentially enable unauthorized access or modification of sensitive filesystem areas. The issue was addressed and fixed in macOS Sonoma 14.4 through improved handling of symlinks. The vulnerability has a CVSS score of 7.8, indicating a high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. There are no known exploits in the wild at this time. The vendor advisory confirms that the fix is included in the macOS Sonoma 14.4 update released on March 7, 2024.

References

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