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Security Resources
General: Forums topic: Privacy & Security Apple Platform Security support document Developer > Security Security Audit Thoughts forums post Cryptography: Forums tags: Security, Apple CryptoKit Security framework documentation Apple CryptoKit framework documentation Common Crypto man pages — For the full list of pages, run: % man -k 3cc For more information about man pages, see Reading UNIX Manual Pages. On Cryptographic Key Formats forums post SecItem attributes for keys forums post CryptoCompatibility sample code Keychain: Forums tags: Security Security > Keychain Items documentation TN3137 On Mac keychain APIs and implementations SecItem Fundamentals forums post SecItem Pitfalls and Best Practices forums post Investigating hard-to-reproduce keychain problems forums post App ID Prefix Change and Keychain Access forums post Smart cards and other secure tokens: Forums tag: CryptoTokenKit CryptoTokenKit framework documentation Mac-specific resources: Forums tags: Security Foundation, Security Interface Security Foundation framework documentation Security Interface framework documentation BSD Privilege Escalation on macOS Related: Networking Resources — This covers high-level network security, including HTTPS and TLS. Network Extension Resources — This covers low-level network security, including VPN and content filters. Code Signing Resources Notarisation Resources Trusted Execution Resources — This includes Gatekeeper. App Sandbox Resources Share and Enjoy — Quinn “The Eskimo!” @ Developer Technical Support @ Apple let myEmail = "eskimo" + "1" + "@" + "apple.com"
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3.3k
Aug ’25
Privacy & Security Resources
General: Forums topic: Privacy & Security Privacy Resources Security Resources Share and Enjoy — Quinn “The Eskimo!” @ Developer Technical Support @ Apple let myEmail = "eskimo" + "1" + "@" + "apple.com"
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209
Jul ’25
How to migrate macOS keychain entry to new rewritten app?
I'm working on replacing an AppKit-based Mac app with one built on Catalyst, and the Catalyst app doesn't seem to be able to read the keychain item that was saved by the old app. Both apps are using the same bundle ID. The old app uses the old SecKeychain APIs - SecKeychainFindGenericPassword and friends - and the Catalyst app uses the newer SecItemCopyMatching and such. When I try using the new API in the old app to search for the entry, it works, but the exact same code in Catalyst fails. Here's how I save an item in the old app: NSString *strItemId = @"my_item_id; NSString *username = @"user"; const char *userPointer = [username UTF8String]; NSString *password = @"password"; const char *pwPointer = [password UTF8String]; SecKeychainItemRef ref = NULL; OSStatus status = SecKeychainFindGenericPassword(0, (UInt32)strlen(strItemId.UTF8String), strItemId.UTF8String, 0, NULL, NULL, NULL, &ref); if (status == errSecSuccess && ref != NULL) { //update existing item SecKeychainAttribute attr; attr.length = (UInt32)strlen(userPointer); attr.data = (void *)userPointer; attr.tag = kSecAccountItemAttr; SecKeychainAttributeList list; list.count = 1; list.attr = &attr; OSStatus writeStatus = SecKeychainItemModifyAttributesAndData(ref, &list, (UInt32)strlen(pwPointer), pwPointer); } else { status = SecKeychainAddGenericPassword(NULL, (UInt32)strlen(strItemId.UTF8String), strItemId.UTF8String, (UInt32)strlen(userPointer), userPointer, (UInt32)strlen(pwPointer), pwPointer, NULL); } And here's the query code that works in the old app but returns errSecItemNotFound in Catalyst: NSMutableDictionary *queryDict = [[[NSMutableDictionary alloc]init]autorelease]; [queryDict setObject:(__bridge id)kSecClassGenericPassword forKey:(__bridge id)kSecClass]; [queryDict setObject:(@"my_item_id") forKey:(__bridge id)kSecAttrService]; [queryDict setObject:(__bridge id)kSecMatchLimitOne forKey:(__bridge id)kSecMatchLimit]; [queryDict setObject:(__bridge id)kCFBooleanTrue forKey:(__bridge id)kSecReturnAttributes]; CFMutableDictionaryRef outDictionary = nil; OSStatus err = SecItemCopyMatching((__bridge CFDictionaryRef)queryDict, (CFTypeRef *)&outDictionary); I tried creating a new blank AppKit-based Mac app project in Xcode and gave it the old Mac app's bundle ID, and the SecItemCopyMatching query code above works there. Then I created a new iOS target with Catalyst enabled, also with the same bundle ID, and the query code running there under Catalyst returned errSecItemNotFound. So maybe the issue is something specific to Catalyst? Is there something I need to do with the Catalyst app to give it access to the old app's keychain entry, besides setting its bundle ID to match the old app?
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719
Oct ’24
Green camera indicator illuminates when switching apps
Hello. I’m running the 18.3 beta on an 15 pro and have noticed the green camera indicator light turns on when I switch apps. I also am unable to use my flashlight until it turns off (usually a second or two). I’ve checked my privacy and access settings and nothing looks out of the norm. I’ve also closed all rubbing apps, but the issue continues.
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829
Oct ’24
macOS PSSO extension development
Hey guys, I have recently started with developing an extension to support PSSO, I am at a very initial stage and trying out device registration. I am trying to fetch the registration token in my MDM profile but when running in debug mode I don't see the token , and also when I see the console log I see errors like error 14:44:00.465847+0530 AppSSODaemon Error Domain=com.apple.PlatformSSO Code=-1004 "no device configuration data to load" UserInfo={NSLocalizedDescription=no device configuration data to load} error 14:44:00.466434+0530 AppSSOAgent Error Domain=com.apple.PlatformSSO Code=-1004 "no device configuration" UserInfo={NSLocalizedDescription=no device configuration}, user default 14:44:00.466145+0530 AppSSODaemon -[PODaemonProcess deviceConfigurationForIdentifer:completion:] identifer = 96DBA2E4-6DB8-4937-85A8-69F7632B8717 on <private> error 14:44:00.466773+0530 SSO extension Error Domain=com.apple.PlatformSSO Code=-1001 "failed to retrieve SecKeyProxyEndpoint for key" UserInfo={NSLocalizedDescription=failed to retrieve SecKeyProxyEndpoint for key, NSUnderlyingError=0x14b608820 {Error Domain=com.apple.PlatformSSO Code=-1001 "Failed to receive key proxy endpoint." UserInfo={NSLocalizedDescription=Failed to receive key proxy endpoint.}}} I think due to some reason the PSSO process is not able to get the token from my configuration. And this is how my configuration profile looks like <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?> <!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd"> <plist version="1.0"> <dict> <key>PayloadContent</key> <array> <dict> <key>ExtensionIdentifier</key> <string>com.test.PSSO.SSO-extension</string> <key>PayloadDisplayName</key> <string>ingle Sign-On Extensions</string> <key>PayloadIdentifier</key> <string>com.apple.extensiblesso.96DBA2E4-6DB8-4937-85A8-69F7632B8717</string> <key>PayloadType</key> <string>com.apple.extensiblesso</string> <key>PayloadUUID</key> <string>CDC67F3E-0687-4796-95B0-A61EF6F3F9A7</string> <key>PayloadVersion</key> <integer>1</integer> <key>TeamIdentifier</key> <string>my_team_identifier</string> <key>Type</key> <string>Redirect</string> <key>RegistrationToken</key> <string>dummy_token_123</string> <key>PlatformSSO</key> <dict> <key>AuthenticationMethod</key> <string>Password</string> <key>EnableAuthorization</key> <true/> <key>EnableCreateUserAtLogin</key> <true/> <key>NewUserAuthorizationMode</key> <string>Standard</string> <key>UseSharedDeviceKeys</key> <true/> <key>UserAuthorizationMode</key> <string>Standard</string> </dict> <key>URLs</key> <array> <string>my_url</string> </array> </dict> </array> <key>PayloadDisplayName</key> <string>SSOE</string> <key>PayloadIdentifier</key> <string>com.test.psso.configuration</string> <key>PayloadScope</key> <string>System</string> <key>PayloadType</key> <string>Configuration</string> <key>PayloadUUID</key> <string>0DC6670F-F853-49CB-91B3-1C5ECB5D3F46</string> <key>PayloadVersion</key> <integer>1</integer> </dict> </plist>
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843
Oct ’24
How does the Endpoint Security Client communicate with the Container APP?
I've developed a Endpoint Security system extension, which will be installed in a container APP. I use XPC to send message from container APP to the ES client, it works fine. I have developed an Endpoint Security system extension that will be installed in a container app. I utilize XPC to send messages from the container app to the ES client, and it functions properly. However, when I attempt to send messages from the ES client to the container app, it always displays an error: 'Couldn’t communicate with a helper application.'. I have removed the sandbox capability of the container app and also employed the same app group for both the ES client and the container app. When an XPC client is connected, I use the following code in the ES client to establish two-way communication. - (BOOL)listener:(NSXPCListener *)listener shouldAcceptNewConnection:(NSXPCConnection *)newConnection { newConnection.exportedInterface = [NSXPCInterface interfaceWithProtocol:@protocol(NXFileGuardXPCProtocol)]; NXFileGuardXPCService *xpcService = [NXFileGuardXPCService sharedInstance]; newConnection.exportedObject = xpcService; // To APP container client (As remote interface) newConnection.remoteObjectInterface = [NSXPCInterface interfaceWithProtocol:@protocol(NXFileGuardXPCClientProtocol)]; [newConnection activate]; self.containerAPPConnection = newConnection; return YES; } But it always fails. How can I deal with this error?
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716
Oct ’24
Remove Tracking from App
Hello I have an app that uses the user's Device ID for tracking purposes. I have since removed all ads and tracking. I am now in a difficult position because I cannot turn off Device ID Tracking from App Privacy. The current app version has this on and contains the framework for turning it on. If I try to submit an app without Tracking, it gets rejected with the message "The app uses the AppTrackingTransparency framework, but we are unable to locate the App Tracking Transparency permission request when reviewed on iOS 18.0." So, I am now stuck. I cannot turn off Device Tracking in App Privacy because my app previously had tracking. I cannot remove the framework for Tracking because App Privacy has tracking on. How can I proceed to remove all tracking traces from my app? Jake
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587
Oct ’24
Secure WS requests
Hello, I would like to secure the exchanges between my application and my webservices to make sure requests are only made by an authentic application. By searching the internet I discovered that App Attest from Device Check framework exists but it looks like there are some limitation about it : App Attest doesn't work on most App Extensions (like Share extension) We are limited by the requests count made to the App Attest webservice (only when generating the Apple certificate, one time by device / application). The problem is I need this security on my app extension because I have a Share extension sending e-mails. Do you have advice to secure the exchanges between my app and my webservices ?
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449
Oct ’24
What I will receive as part of deep linking in case of Apple Pay In-app verification?
In the case of YellowFlow with In-App verification, I understand we have to configure the Launch URL (deep linking) in the PNO portal to open the app from Wallet and proceed with In-App Verification. How do we identify or retrieve information about the card the user tries to verify from the wallet when the app is opened through deep linking? I understand we can query for all secure passes and get the pass activation state to see if any of the passes require activation, How can I verify this is the card the user is trying to activate from the wallet app? What information can I receive from the PassKit SDK that I can send to the backend to identify, resolve, and activate the card?
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709
Oct ’24
Using AppleId appleIdToken in two different sub-systems
Hello Apple ID support, When a user successfully login with Apple, the apple OAuth will produce a appleIdToken. From my understanding this token is best to not leave the user device. I have two sub-system that can take a appleIdToken and manages the token-refresh separately. In short: Apple -> appleIdToken sub-SystemA(appleIdToken) and sub-systemB(appleIdToken) sub-SystemA and sub-systemB has two separate token management/refresh The question: Is this allowed by the Apple identify server? Is the usecase of supplying appleIdToken to sub-SystemA and sub-systemB valid?
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719
Oct ’24
macOS Sequoia beta 3: SecPKCS12Import failed with error - 23000
In our App, we store identity in keychain in a specific path var keychain: SecKeychain? let status = SecKeychainCreate(path, UInt32(password.count), password, false, nil, &keychain) guard status == errSecSuccess else { logger.error("Error in creating keychain: \(String(describing: SecCopyErrorMessageString(status, nil)))") throw KeychainError.keychainCreationError } Then later whenever process needs it. it open keychain, import it and uses it. status = SecPKCS12Import(identityData as CFData, [kSecImportExportPassphrase : password, kSecImportExportKeychain: keychain] as CFDictionary, &identityItems) authlog.info("Import status: \(status)") guard status == errSecSuccess else { authlog.error("Error in exporting identity : \(status) \(String(describing:SecCopyErrorMessageString(status, nil)))") throw ClientAuthError.identityFormationError } This worked well till sequoia beta 2. In Sequoia beta 3 and 4, this fails to import with error -25300 : The specified item could not be found in the keychain. one thing I noticed is import succeeds if the keychain is freshly created. when tried to reuse existing keychain it fails in import error. Is this a bug in beta or it any changes made in keychain level by Apple itself. Please help with the solution Log trace: [ 24-07-2024 12:39:15:192 ] [INFO] Challenge delegate received [ 24-07-2024 12:39:15:192 ] [INFO] Client authentication challenge [ 2024-07-24 12:39:15 ] [INFO] retcode of "/bin/chmod -R 777 "/Library/<path>/data/agent-resource"" ::: 0 [ 24-07-2024 12:39:15:237 ] [INFO] Opening keychain... [ 24-07-2024 12:39:15:240 ] [NOTICE] Keychain open status: -25294 [ 24-07-2024 12:39:15:241 ] [ERROR] Keychain error: Optional(The specified keychain could not be found.) [ 24-07-2024 12:39:15:241 ] [INFO] Creating keychain.. [ 24-07-2024 12:39:15:448 ] [INFO] Import status: 0 [ 24-07-2024 12:39:15:448 ] [INFO] Identity: <SecIdentity 0x7ff3ec1f7df0 [0x7ff85540e9a0]> [ 24-07-2024 12:39:15:448 ] [INFO] Credential sent [ 24-07-2024 12:39:15:581 ] [INFO] Upload request completed.. [ 24-07-2024 12:39:15:583 ] [INFO] Status code: 200 [ 25-07-2024 12:24:55:300 ] [INFO] Client authentication challenge [ 25-07-2024 12:24:55:300 ] [INFO] Opening keychain... [ 25-07-2024 12:24:55:305 ] [NOTICE] Keychain open status: 0 [ 25-07-2024 12:24:55:439 ] [INFO] Import status: -25300 [ 25-07-2024 12:24:55:440 ] [ERROR] Error in exporting identity : -25300 Optional(The specified item could not be found in the keychain.) [ 25-07-2024 12:24:55:440 ] [CRITICAL] Error in getting identity: identityFormationError [ 25-07-2024 12:24:55:441 ] [ERROR] Error in obtaining identity [ 25-07-2024 12:24:55:513 ] [INFO] Download request complete... [ 25-07-2024 12:24:55:515 ] [INFO] Status code: 200
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1.2k
Oct ’24
iOS encryption cache file
I have read that iOS data protection ensures most of the files to be stored encrypted. However, I saw someone insisting (elcomsoft blog) very few files are not encrypted. Are app’s cache files or tmp files not stored encrypted? For example, are safari history.db file and cache files stored in the flash encrypted?
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545
Oct ’24
Email sent to hidden email address ends in spam
Hi I am currently developping the "Sign in with apple" feature. We set up everything according to the documentation : https://developer.apple.com/help/account/configure-app-capabilities/configure-private-email-relay-service When trying to send an email from one of the registered communication emails (that is SPF and DKIM Authentication compliant) the emails are still ending up in the spam box. If it can help the received email address (that is hidden) is a gmail. I can not catch what is missing/wrong on our side.
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296
Oct ’24
Is is possible to grant Local Network permissions for a process through a Configuration Profile?
In the FAQ about Local Network, a lot of topics are covered but, unless I missed something, I didn't see the topic of MDMs being covered. [Q] Could the FAQ be updated to cover whether it is possible to grant this Local Network permission through a configuration profile? The answer, based on google searches and different forums, seems to be a negative. It seems a bit strange considering that this feature has been available on iOS for at least 3 years. Anyway, even if it is not possible, it would be useful to add in the FAQ that this is not possible.
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540
Oct ’24
Unwanted callback from Apple to our Pass Server
We have a Web server for Apple Pass and we received a complaint from a user because the Pass is being deleted every few days from the Apple Wallet App and the user had to reinstall the pass every time. Upon checking our server logs we found DELETE (unregister) requests that were not initiated by the user. Here are some (there are more) of those logs (I replaced some details with * for privacy): From July [29/Jul/2024:23:06:30 +0000] "DELETE /apple_wallet/v1/devices/****/registrations/pass.com..*/** HTTP/1.1" 200 31 "-" "passd/1.0 CFNetwork/1496.0.7 Darwin/23.5.0" From August [17/Aug/2024:22:51:33 +0000] "DELETE /apple_wallet/v1/devices/****/registrations/pass.com..*/** HTTP/1.1" 200 31 "-" "passd/1.0 CFNetwork/1498.700.2 Darwin/23.6.0" From September [08/Sep/2024:23:32:11 +0000] "DELETE /apple_wallet/v1/devices/****/registrations/pass.com...*/** HTTP/1.1" 200 31 "-" "passd/1.0 CFNetwork/1498.700.2 Darwin/23.6.0" Other information for this specific user/device: Phone 14 Pro Max - iOS 17.6 User has few other passes installed but none has disappeared only our issued pass. We are hoping to get some help from Apple to figure out why the DELETE request is being sent out to our server without being initiated by the user. I have already filed a ticket to Apple with Case-ID: 9315232 But I haven't gotten any feedback after a few weeks and some follow ups.
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598
Oct ’24
Install driver without internet or administrator right
I want to install a driver package without internet access and the installation fail. This I think it is due to it need internet to check for signature with Apple Server. The workaround is to disable System Integrity Protection, but I do not have the administrator password to disable it. How to install a driver and allow a driver to run without internet access and administrator account? This driver is develop by ourself but how to by pass the code signing and security check for others to use this driver on their Mac PC? Currently I am following https://developer.apple.com/documentation/systemextensions/ossystemextensionrequest/activationrequest(forextensionwithidentifier:queue:) to activate the system extension If the extension is inactive, the system may need to prompt the user for approval. Which others API can I use which do not need prompt user for approval? Beside in order to validate the code signing, it need to communicate with Apple server which required internet access. Any method to by pass this validation?
3
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715
Oct ’24
PSSO Extension
I'm attempting to make an alternative to the MS Company Portal app. We are looking to implement PSSO in our organization and are not satisfied with the features that Company Portal offers. One example of this is, we don't like what the password reset workflow looks like. We'd like to make it so the reset process is more fluid. Additionally, we want to report the status of the service more readily (not requiring clicking so far into System Settings to locate it). These are just a couple examples of what we're not thrilled with... In light of this, my desire is to create another app, that includes a PSSO extension that is able to connect to Entra. I have scoured the internet, developer portal, and macadmin forum... and have failed to find a comprehensive guide for helping me through this. Currently Using: IDP: Entra Language: SwiftUI Frameworks: MSAL and KeychainAccess Any help would be great... a comprehensive guide would be AMAZING!
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649
Oct ’24
Migration of BundleIDs and certificates
Good day. As part of a business unit separation, we are required to have our product with a different name, bundle IDs and certificates than our current configuration. The product contains network extensions and requires Full Disk Access. We distribute this product to our customers who either support MDM or not. I know from previous experience that a product can be transferred to a different account, which is something we could do only for some parts of our product (only a couple of Bundle IDs). My question is what's the best way to do this. I can imagine that having a scripted scenario where the other business unit's product is removed from customers and ours is installed, in a different folder. The main issue I can foresee is that because our architecture uses several network extensions that are installed as plugins (bad design I know), we would be asking the users for authorisation, again, to use those extensions, plus full disk access. What options do I have?
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751
Oct ’24
Does opensources.apple code are publicly available?
Dear Apple Team, I hope this message finds you well. Recently, while exploring Apple’s open-source resources, I came across some files that appear to contain sensitive information, including private keys. I wanted to reach out to clarify whether these files are intentionally made publicly available or if they might be exposed due to a potential misconfiguration. Understanding the nature of these files is important, and I would appreciate any guidance you can provide regarding their accessibility and any necessary steps that should be taken to address this matter. Thank you for your attention to this issue. I look forward to your response.
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349
Oct ’24
Downloaded certificates not showing up in Certificate Trust Authority
Under iOS 18.0.1, I can't do any development that uses HTTPS, because I can't authorize my generated certificates on my phone. This was not a problem in the past. Normally you AirDrop a root certificate authority to your phone, install the "profile" for it, and then trust it in Settings / General / About / Certificate Trust Authority. Then you can connect to another server on your network that's using the accompanying certificates. But after sucessfully installing two profiles on my phone, neither shows up in Certificate Trust Authority. Anybody else seeing this? This problem, in combo with this one (which prevents running on my Mac as an iPad app) has completely halted my project. I've found reports of this problem that blamed an empty "common name" field in the certs, but that field is populated in both of these.
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951
Oct ’24