CVE-2015-7045 in Mac OS X
Summary
by MITRE
Keychain Access in Apple OS X before 10.11.2 and tvOS before 9.1 improperly interacts with Keychain Agent, which allows attackers to spoof the Keychain Server via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/13/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2015-7045 represents a critical security flaw in Apple's operating system keychain implementation that affects macOS versions prior to 10.11.2 and tvOS versions prior to 9.1. This vulnerability stems from improper interaction between Keychain Access and Keychain Agent components, creating a potential attack vector that enables malicious actors to spoof the Keychain Server. The flaw resides in the fundamental authentication and credential management mechanisms that Apple employs to secure user credentials and access tokens across its ecosystem. The vulnerability specifically targets the trust model that governs how keychain components communicate and validate each other, potentially allowing unauthorized parties to impersonate legitimate keychain services.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves a breakdown in the authentication protocol between Keychain Access and Keychain Agent processes. When these components interact, they rely on specific trust mechanisms that are not properly enforced, creating opportunities for attackers to manipulate the keychain server responses. The unspecified vectors mentioned in the description suggest that the vulnerability may be exploitable through multiple attack paths including man-in-the-middle scenarios, credential injection attacks, or session hijacking techniques. This flaw essentially undermines the cryptographic integrity of the keychain system by allowing attackers to present forged authentication responses that appear legitimate to the system's validation mechanisms.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to organizations and individual users who rely on Apple's keychain services for credential storage and authentication. Attackers who successfully exploit this vulnerability could potentially access stored passwords, encryption keys, certificates, and other sensitive authentication material without proper authorization. The implications extend beyond simple credential theft to include potential system compromise, unauthorized access to network resources, and escalation of privileges within the affected systems. The vulnerability's impact is particularly concerning in enterprise environments where keychain services are extensively used for managing corporate credentials and secure communications. This weakness could enable attackers to maintain persistent access to systems and data, making it a particularly dangerous flaw in terms of long-term security implications.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2015-7045 should prioritize immediate system updates to the patched versions of macOS and tvOS, as these releases contain the necessary fixes to address the keychain interaction issues. Organizations should conduct comprehensive vulnerability assessments to identify systems running affected versions and implement network monitoring to detect potential exploitation attempts. Security teams should also review keychain configurations and credential management practices to ensure that additional security controls are in place. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-284 Access Control Issues and relates to ATT&CK techniques involving credential access and privilege escalation. Regular security audits of keychain implementations and mandatory patch management policies are essential to prevent exploitation of this and similar vulnerabilities. Additionally, organizations should consider implementing multi-factor authentication mechanisms and credential hardening practices to reduce the overall risk surface when dealing with keychain-based authentication systems.