Traffic interception via improper certificate validation
Published Sep 14, 2026 · Updated Sep 14, 2026
Certificate validation in Apple macOS before 15.8, 26.7, and 27 allows man-in-the-middle attackers to intercept network traffic. Apple has not identified the affected certificate-validation component or disclosed which validation check fails to reject an attacker-controlled certificate. Exploitation requires a privileged network position and is limited by the published record to interception of network traffic.
Summary
What happened
Certificate validation in Apple macOS before 15.8, 26.7, and 27 allows man-in-the-middle attackers to intercept network traffic. Apple has not identified the affected certificate-validation component or disclosed which validation check fails to reject an attacker-controlled certificate. Exploitation requires a privileged network position and is limited by the published record to interception of network traffic.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-86889
- Published
- Sep 14, 2026
- Updated
- Sep 14, 2026
- Vendor
- Apple
- Product
- macOS
- Classifications
- T1557
- Attack vector
- adjacent
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Sep 14, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Sep 14, 2026Record 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.
- Affected versionversion=0 <15.8
- Affected versionversion=0 <26.7
- Affected versionversion=0 <27
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
No CVSS assessment is available in this record.
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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
No public exploit references are available in this record.
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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