VulnerabilityPublished 25 Mar 2026Updated 2 Apr 2026

CVE-2026-20651: Apple macOS · An app may be able to access sensitive user data

Affects Apple macOSSource CVE Database V5

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Not known to be exploited · CVSS 6.2 Medium · fixed in 26.3 : update Apple macOS when convenient.

Data as of 30 Oct 2026, 11:52 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

6.2Medium

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

EPSS: 0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 11% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 26.3, 15.7.5, 14.8.4

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

Attack Vector: Local
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: 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: 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 25 Mar 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: 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 30 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.
Weaponized: A Metasploit exploit module or Exploit-DB entry exists (Metasploit scanner modules do not count), 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

Upgrade Apple macOS to 26.3, 15.7.5 or 14.8.4.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
ApplemacOS	Affected <26.3	Fixed in 26.3
ApplemacOS	Affected <15.7.5	Fixed in 15.7.5
ApplemacOS	Affected <14.8.4	Fixed in 14.8.4

AI-suggested

To mitigate CVE-2026-20651, organizations and users should promptly apply the security updates released by Apple for macOS Sequoia 15.7.5, Sonoma 14.8.4, and Tahoe 26.3. Beyond patching, administrators should enforce strict application control policies to limit the installation and execution of untrusted or unnecessary applications, reducing the risk of local exploitation. Employing endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions can help monitor for suspicious local file access patterns indicative of exploitation attempts. Additionally, users should be educated about the risks of installing unverified software and the importance of maintaining updated systems. For environments with sensitive data, implementing file system permissions and sandboxing mechanisms can further restrict application access to temporary files. Regular audits of temporary file usage and cleanup policies can also reduce exposure. Finally, organizations should maintain robust access controls and user privilege management to limit local access to trusted users only.

Description

A privacy issue was addressed with improved handling of temporary files. This issue is fixed in macOS Sequoia 15.7.5, macOS Sonoma 14.8.4, macOS Tahoe 26.3. An app may be able to access sensitive user data.

Impact

The primary impact of CVE-2026-20651 is the unauthorized disclosure of sensitive user data on affected macOS systems. Since the vulnerability allows local applications to access data they should not, it poses a significant privacy risk, especially in environments where multiple users or untrusted applications coexist. Confidentiality is compromised, which could lead to leakage of personal information, credentials, or other sensitive content. However, the vulnerability does not affect data integrity or system availability. The requirement for local access limits the attack surface to users or applications already present on the system, reducing the risk of remote exploitation. Nonetheless, in enterprise or shared computing environments, malicious insiders or compromised applications could exploit this flaw to escalate data access. The absence of known exploits in the wild suggests limited current exploitation, but the presence of a reliable vulnerability with a medium severity score warrants prompt remediation to prevent potential abuse.

CWE-377DEPRECATED: Insecure Temporary File (opens in a new tab)
Class weaknessOWASP Top 10 A01:2025: Broken Access Control (opens in a new tab)
This entry has been deprecated. It was focused only on the affected resource (temporary file) and not the behavior or mistake that produced the insecure temporary file, which caused confusion and incorrect mappings.
MITRE does not allow mapping vulnerabilities to this entry; it groups weaknesses rather than naming one.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Authorization (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Explore for Predictable Temporary File Names (opens in a new tab)
Screen Temporary Files for Sensitive Information (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 3 Apr 2026, 02:55 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-377

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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