VulnerabilityPublished 20 Dec 2024Updated 2 Apr 2026

CVE-2024-44223: Apple macOS · An attacker with physical access to a Mac may be able to view protected content from the Login Window

Affects Apple macOSSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 4.6 Medium · fixed in 15.1 : update Apple macOS when convenient.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 10:12 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

4.6Medium

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

EPSS: 0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 20% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 15.1

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

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

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

Attack Vector: Physical: The attack requires the attacker to physically touch or manipulate the vulnerable component. Physical interaction may be brief or persistent.
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: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
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 20 Dec 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 or the CVSS exploit maturity 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

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Apple macOS	Affected =0	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

To mitigate CVE-2024-44223, organizations should prioritize updating all affected macOS devices to version Sequoia 15.1 or later, where the vulnerability is fixed. Physical security controls must be strengthened to prevent unauthorized access to devices, including the use of locked rooms, secure storage, and tamper-evident measures. Enabling full disk encryption (FileVault) and requiring strong login passwords can reduce the risk of data exposure. Additionally, organizations should implement policies to limit physical access to Macs, especially in high-risk environments. Regular audits of device security and user awareness training about physical security risks are recommended. For environments where physical access cannot be fully controlled, consider deploying endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions that can alert on suspicious local access attempts.

Description

This issue was addressed through improved state management. This issue is fixed in macOS Sequoia 15.1. An attacker with physical access to a Mac may be able to view protected content from the Login Window.

Impact

The primary impact of CVE-2024-44223 is the unauthorized disclosure of sensitive information from the macOS Login Window when an attacker has physical access to the device. This can lead to confidentiality breaches, potentially exposing user data, system status, or other protected content visible at login. While the vulnerability does not affect system integrity or availability, the exposure of sensitive information could facilitate further attacks or social engineering. Organizations with macOS devices in physically accessible environments—such as offices, public kiosks, or shared workspaces—face increased risk. The inability to exploit this vulnerability remotely limits its impact to insider threats or physical theft scenarios. However, given the widespread use of macOS in enterprise, education, and government sectors, the potential for sensitive data exposure is significant if devices are not properly secured or updated. The absence of known exploits in the wild reduces immediate risk but does not eliminate the need for prompt remediation.

CWE-281Improper Preservation of Permissions (opens in a new tab)
Base weaknessOWASP Top 10 A01:2025: Broken Access Control (opens in a new tab)
The product does not preserve permissions or incorrectly preserves permissions when copying, restoring, or sharing objects, which can cause them to have less restrictive permissions than intended.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Authorization (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V8.3.8 (opens in a new tab)
V13.4.2 (opens in a new tab)
V7.2.2 (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

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 2 Apr 2026, 23:59 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-281

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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