CVE-2015-3785 in Mac OS X
Summary
by MITRE
The Telephony component in Apple OS X before 10.11, when the Continuity feature is enabled, allows local users to bypass intended telephone-call restrictions via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/21/2024
The vulnerability described in CVE-2015-3785 resides within Apple's Telephony component of macOS operating systems prior to version 10.11, specifically when the Continuity feature is active. This represents a significant security flaw that undermines the intended access controls and restrictions designed to prevent unauthorized telephone call operations. The vulnerability manifests through unspecified vectors that allow local users to circumvent the established telephone-call restrictions, effectively creating a backdoor mechanism for unauthorized communication activities.
This security weakness falls under the category of privilege escalation and access control bypass, with potential implications for both user privacy and system integrity. The Continuity feature, designed to seamlessly connect iOS devices with macOS for phone calls, messaging, and other communications, becomes a vector for unauthorized access when the underlying Telephony component fails to properly enforce restriction policies. The flaw demonstrates a critical failure in the security model implementation where local users can exploit the system's trust relationships to perform actions outside their intended permissions.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability enables local attackers to make unauthorized phone calls or access restricted communication features without proper authentication or authorization. The implications extend beyond simple unauthorized calling, as it potentially allows for more sophisticated attacks including social engineering, financial fraud, or data exfiltration through communication channels. The vulnerability affects all macOS versions before 10.11, representing a substantial attack surface across multiple generations of Apple's operating system.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-284, which addresses improper access control mechanisms, and demonstrates how feature implementation can introduce security weaknesses when proper access validation is omitted. From an attacker's perspective, this represents a low-effort, high-impact vector for privilege escalation, as local access is typically easier to obtain than remote access. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this under privilege escalation techniques, specifically focusing on local privilege escalation through application vulnerabilities.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2015-3785 primarily involve upgrading to macOS 10.11 or later versions where Apple has addressed the underlying Telephony component security flaws. System administrators should also implement additional monitoring for unauthorized communication activities and consider disabling the Continuity feature when it is not actively required. Organizations should conduct comprehensive security assessments to identify systems running vulnerable macOS versions and ensure proper patch management procedures are in place to prevent exploitation of similar vulnerabilities. The vulnerability highlights the importance of secure implementation of integrated features and proper access control enforcement in operating system components.