VulnerabilityPublished 25 Mar 2026Updated 2 Apr 2026

CVE-2026-20701: Apple macOS · An app may be able to connect to a network share without user consent

Affects Apple macOSSource CVE Database V5

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Not known to be exploited · CVSS 7.5 High · fixed in 26.4 : patch Apple macOS soon.

Data as of 30 Oct 2026, 11:52 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

7.5High

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

EPSS: 0.4% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 37% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 26.4, 15.7.5, 14.8.5

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

Attack Vector: Network
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: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
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 26.4, 15.7.5 or 14.8.5.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
ApplemacOS	Affected <26.4	Fixed in 26.4
ApplemacOS	Affected <15.7.5	Fixed in 15.7.5
ApplemacOS	Affected <14.8.5	Fixed in 14.8.5

AI-suggested

Immediately apply the security updates provided by Apple in macOS Sequoia 15.7.5, Sonoma 14.8.5, and Tahoe 26.4 to all affected systems.
Enforce strict application vetting and limit installation of untrusted or unsigned applications to reduce the risk of malicious apps exploiting this vulnerability.
Implement network segmentation and access controls to restrict which systems and applications can access sensitive network shares.
Monitor network share connection logs for unusual or unauthorized access patterns that could indicate exploitation attempts.
Use endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools to detect anomalous behaviors related to network share mounting by applications.
Educate users and administrators about the risks of unauthorized network share access and encourage reporting of suspicious application behavior.
Review and tighten sandbox and permission policies for applications, especially those that require network access.
Consider deploying application whitelisting to prevent unauthorized apps from running.
Regularly audit network share permissions to ensure least privilege principles are enforced.
Maintain up-to-date backups of critical data to mitigate potential data loss from secondary attacks.

Description

An access issue was addressed with additional sandbox restrictions. This issue is fixed in macOS Sequoia 15.7.5, macOS Sonoma 14.8.5, macOS Tahoe 26.4. An app may be able to connect to a network share without user consent.

Impact

The primary impact of CVE-2026-20701 is unauthorized access to network shares without user consent, leading to potential confidentiality breaches. Sensitive data stored on network shares could be exposed to malicious or compromised applications, increasing the risk of data leakage, intellectual property theft, or privacy violations. Since the vulnerability does not affect integrity or availability, it does not directly enable data modification or denial of service. However, unauthorized access could be a stepping stone for lateral movement or further compromise within an enterprise network. The ease of exploitation—requiring no privileges or user interaction—makes this vulnerability particularly dangerous in environments where untrusted or less vetted applications are allowed to run. Organizations with critical data on network shares, such as government agencies, financial institutions, healthcare providers, and enterprises with intellectual property, face heightened risk. The lack of known exploits in the wild reduces immediate threat but does not eliminate the risk of future exploitation. Failure to patch could result in significant data breaches and regulatory compliance issues related to data protection laws.

CWE-693Protection Mechanism Failure (opens in a new tab)
Pillar weaknessOWASP Top 10 A06:2025: Insecure Design (opens in a new tab)
The product does not use or incorrectly uses a protection mechanism that provides sufficient defense against directed attacks against the product.
MITRE discourages mapping vulnerabilities to this broad entry; the root cause is usually a more specific weakness.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Secure Design Principles (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Accessing Functionality Not Properly Constrained by ACLs (opens in a new tab)
Cross Site Tracing (opens in a new tab)
Directory Indexing (opens in a new tab)
Using Malicious Files (opens in a new tab)
Encryption Brute Forcing (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 3 Apr 2026, 03:04 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-693

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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