AI analysis
HP has disclosed an escalation-of-privilege vulnerability in HP Easy Start for macOS, versions prior to 2.16.7.260722. The flaw is mapped to CWE-319 (cleartext transmission of sensitive information), and its CVSS 4.0 network vector indicates it can be exploited remotely with low privileges required, most plausibly by an attacker in a position to intercept or tamper with network traffic used by the utility (such as update or download communications). A successful attack could allow the attacker to gain elevated privileges on the Mac running the software. Users are exposed when running any HP Easy Start for macOS release older than 2.16.7.260722, typically installed during the setup or ongoing use of an HP printer. There is currently no known public proof-of-concept, no CISA KEV listing, and no confirmed in-the-wild exploitation; HP has released version 2.16.7.260722 to remediate this issue, along with related issues CVE-2026-12554 and CVE-2026-12555.
What to do: Upgrade HP Easy Start for macOS to version 2.16.7.260722 or later, which also addresses related issues CVE-2026-12554 and CVE-2026-12555. Audit managed Macs for older Easy Start installs (check installed app/utility versions and common install locations) and prioritize hosts on untrusted or shared networks where traffic interception is feasible. Until patched, avoid running printer setup or update flows for HP devices over untrusted networks.
Affected
| HP Easy Start for macOS | all versions prior to 2.16.7.260722 |
Estimated exposure
massplausibly millions of macOS users with HP printers (HP Easy Start ships with HP printer setup workflows; exact install counts are not published) — HP's printer installed base is in the hundreds of millions and Easy Start is the standard macOS setup utility for those devices, so an order-of-magnitude estimate of millions of affected macOS installations is reasonable, though true…
Order-of-magnitude estimate by the model from install counts, market share and public scan data it knows; verify before quoting.
Description
Potential security vulnerabilities have been identified in HP Easy Start for macOS, versions prior to 2.16.7.260722. These potential vulnerabilities may lead to escalation of privilege. HP is releasing updates to mitigate these potential vulnerabilities.