CVE-2015-7072 in iOS
Summary
by MITRE
dyld in Apple iOS before 9.2, tvOS before 9.1, and watchOS before 2.1 mishandles segment validation, which allows attackers to execute arbitrary code in a privileged context via a crafted app.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/29/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2015-7072 represents a critical flaw in Apple's dynamic link editor dyld component that affected multiple Apple operating systems including iOS versions prior to 9.2, tvOS versions prior to 9.1, and watchOS versions prior to 2.1. This issue stems from improper handling of segment validation during the dynamic loading process of applications, creating a privilege escalation vector that could be exploited by malicious actors to execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges. The flaw resides in the core system component responsible for loading and linking shared libraries, making it a fundamental security weakness that impacts the entire application execution environment.
The technical nature of this vulnerability involves a failure in the segment validation mechanism within dyld that is responsible for verifying the integrity and authenticity of memory segments during application loading. When an application is loaded into memory, dyld performs validation checks on the various segments that constitute the binary to ensure they meet security requirements and have not been tampered with. However, the flaw allows attackers to craft specially designed applications that can bypass these validation checks, effectively enabling the loading of malicious code segments that would normally be rejected. This represents a classic case of insufficient input validation and improper privilege management, aligning with CWE-20 (Improper Input Validation) and CWE-276 (Incorrect Default Permissions) categories.
The operational impact of CVE-2015-7072 is severe and far-reaching, as it enables attackers to achieve privilege escalation from a regular application context to a system-level privileged execution environment. This means that malicious applications could potentially execute code with the same privileges as system processes, allowing for complete system compromise, data exfiltration, and persistent access to affected devices. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it operates at a low level within the operating system, making it difficult to detect and prevent through traditional application-level security measures. Attackers could leverage this flaw to install malicious software, access sensitive user data, or even modify system files and configurations without user consent or awareness.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate system updates to the affected Apple operating system versions, as Apple released security patches specifically addressing this issue in iOS 9.2, tvOS 9.1, and watchOS 2.1. Organizations and individuals should ensure their devices are updated to the latest available versions to protect against exploitation attempts. Additionally, security professionals should implement monitoring for suspicious application behavior and network traffic patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts. The remediation process should include comprehensive vulnerability assessment of all affected systems and implementation of additional security controls such as application whitelisting and enhanced monitoring of system calls related to dynamic loading processes. This vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of maintaining up-to-date system software and highlights the need for robust security practices that address both application-level and system-level vulnerabilities. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this type of vulnerability under privilege escalation techniques, specifically targeting the use of system-level flaws to gain elevated permissions and execute arbitrary code in protected environments.