What is CVE-2021-1853?

CVE-2021-1853 is a high-severity vulnerability in Apple macOS, classified under Improper Privilege Management. CVSS score: 7.8/10. Published 2021-09-08.

How severe is CVE-2021-1853?

High severity. CVSS v3 base score is 7.8 out of 10.

Privilege escalation in Apple macOS

CVE-2021-1853

A logic issue was addressed with improved state management. This issue is fixed in macOS Big Sur 11.3. A local attacker may be able to elevate their privileges.

Vulnerability class: Privilege Escalation

Published 2021-09-08 · last modified 2026-06-17.

CVSS v3 metric

CVSS v3 base score 7.8 (High). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.

EPSS exploit prediction

EPSS: 0.003 (19.8th percentile), scored 2026-10-02.

Very low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days; routine patching cadence is appropriate. 20th percentile — 19.8% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.

EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.003 · newest: 0.003 · change: 0.000

Affected products

Apple macOS — versions unspecified

Weakness classification (CWE)

CWE-269 — Improper Privilege Management

References

support.apple.com/en-us/HT212325 (Release Notes, Vendor Advisory)

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2021-1853?: CVE-2021-1853 is a high-severity vulnerability in Apple macOS, classified under Improper Privilege Management. CVSS score: 7.8/10. Published 2021-09-08.
How severe is CVE-2021-1853?: High severity. CVSS v3 base score is 7.8 out of 10.