CVE-2023-41036Public exploit

Root privilege escalation via exposed IPC method

Published Sep 12, 2023 · Updated Nov 27, 2024

Privilege escalation in MacVim before 178 allows local users to execute arbitrary code as root through an exposed IPC interface. MMAppController registers itself as an unrestricted NSConnection root object, exposing executeInLoginShell to every local process. Exploitation requires MacVim to run with root privileges while a malicious local process polls the registered connection; the payload then inherits root privileges.

CVSS severity7.8
High
EPSS probability0.34%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Privilege escalation in MacVim before 178 allows local users to execute arbitrary code as root through an exposed IPC interface. MMAppController registers itself as an unrestricted NSConnection root object, exposing executeInLoginShell to every local process. Exploitation requires MacVim to run with root privileges while a malicious local process polls the registered connection; the payload then inherits root privileges.

The record

CVE
CVE-2023-41036
Published
Sep 12, 2023
Updated
Nov 27, 2024
Vendor
MacVim
Product
MacVim
Classifications
CWE-269, T1068
Attack vector
local
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Sep 12, 2023CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Nov 27, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=< 178

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

MacVim · MacVimversion=< 178

Published CVSS scores

7.8GitHub, Inc.CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
7.8NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

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No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-269Improper Privilege Management
T1068Exploitation for Privilege Escalation

Public exploit references

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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