VulnerabilityPublished 11 Dec 2024Updated 2 Apr 2026

CVE-2024-54491: Apple macOS · A malicious application may be able to determine a user's current location

Affects Apple macOSSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 5.5 Medium · fixed in 15.2 : update Apple macOS when convenient.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 17:16 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 13% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 15.2

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 11 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-2024-54491, organizations should promptly update all macOS devices to version Sequoia 15.2 or later, where the vulnerability is fixed by sanitizing logging outputs. Restricting the installation of applications to trusted sources such as the Apple App Store or enterprise-approved software reduces the risk of malicious apps gaining local execution. Employ endpoint protection solutions that monitor for suspicious application behavior and local privilege escalation attempts. Educate users about the risks of running untrusted applications and the importance of verifying app sources. Implement strict access controls and least privilege principles to limit who can install or execute software locally. Additionally, auditing and monitoring system logs for unusual access patterns or attempts to read sensitive logs can help detect exploitation attempts. Organizations should also review privacy policies and compliance requirements related to location data to ensure adequate protections are in place.

Description

The issue was resolved by sanitizing logging. This issue is fixed in macOS Sequoia 15.2. A malicious application may be able to determine a user's current location.

Impact

The primary impact of CVE-2024-54491 is the unauthorized disclosure of a user's current location, which compromises user privacy and confidentiality. For organizations, this can lead to privacy violations, potential regulatory non-compliance (e.g., GDPR), and targeted attacks based on location data. Although the vulnerability does not affect system integrity or availability, the exposure of location information can facilitate further social engineering, physical security risks, or stalking. Since exploitation requires local access and user interaction, the risk is mitigated somewhat by these barriers, but insider threats or users tricked into running malicious apps remain a concern. Enterprises with macOS deployments, especially those handling sensitive or classified information, may face increased risk if attackers leverage this vulnerability to track or profile employees. The absence of known exploits suggests a window of opportunity for defenders to patch and harden systems before active attacks emerge.

References

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 3 Apr 2026, 00:17 UTC

Technical details

References

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