CVE-2023-40455 in macOS
Summary
by MITRE • 09/27/2023
A permissions issue was addressed with additional restrictions. This issue is fixed in macOS Sonoma 14. A sandboxed process may be able to circumvent sandbox restrictions.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/06/2025
This vulnerability represents a sandbox escape mechanism that undermines the fundamental security model of macOS Sonoma 14. The issue stems from insufficient permission controls that allow sandboxed processes to potentially access resources they should not be authorized to reach. The flaw exists within the operating system's sandboxing implementation where additional restrictions were deemed inadequate to prevent unauthorized access patterns. According to CWE-276, this represents a classic permissions flaw where the system fails to properly enforce access controls, creating a pathway for privilege escalation.
The technical nature of this vulnerability allows malicious or compromised sandboxed applications to bypass the isolation mechanisms designed to protect the system from unauthorized operations. Sandboxing is a critical security feature that restricts what applications can access on a system, but this flaw enables processes to circumvent these boundaries through improper permission handling. The vulnerability essentially creates a backdoor within the sandbox architecture that could be exploited by attackers to gain elevated privileges or access restricted system resources. This aligns with ATT&CK technique T1548.003 which covers abuse of sudo or other privilege escalation mechanisms.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is significant as it potentially allows attackers to execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges or access sensitive system information. A sandboxed process that successfully exploits this issue could access user data, system files, or even other applications running in different sandbox contexts. The risk is particularly concerning given that many applications rely on sandboxing for security isolation, making this a potential vector for widespread compromise. The vulnerability affects the core operating system functionality and could enable attackers to move laterally within a system or maintain persistent access.
Organizations should immediately deploy the macOS Sonoma 14 update which contains the necessary restrictions to address this permissions issue. System administrators should conduct thorough security assessments to verify that no malicious processes are currently operating with elevated privileges due to this vulnerability. Additional monitoring should be implemented to detect any unusual sandbox behavior or unauthorized access attempts. The fix implemented in macOS Sonoma 14 addresses the root cause by strengthening the permission controls and ensuring proper enforcement of sandbox boundaries. Regular security audits should be performed to validate that sandboxed applications maintain appropriate isolation and that no similar permission issues have been introduced in other system components.