CVE-2017-13834 in macOS
Summary
by MITRE
An issue was discovered in certain Apple products. macOS before 10.13.1 is affected. The issue involves the "Kernel" component. It allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (memory corruption) or possibly have unspecified other impact via a crafted mach binary.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/05/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-13834 represents a critical kernel-level flaw affecting macOS versions prior to 10.13.1. This issue resides within the kernel component of Apple's operating system, making it particularly dangerous as it operates at the most fundamental level of system functionality. The vulnerability specifically relates to how the kernel processes crafted mach binary files, which are essential components for inter-process communication and system-level operations in macOS. The mach binary format serves as the foundation for macOS's messaging and communication infrastructure, making this flaw potentially devastating to system stability and security.
The technical nature of this vulnerability allows remote attackers to exploit a memory corruption issue through the careful crafting of mach binary payloads. This type of flaw falls under the CWE-121 category of "Stack-based Buffer Overflow" or more specifically CWE-787 "Out-of-bounds Write" when considering kernel-level memory management. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond simple denial of service as indicated in the original description, potentially enabling attackers to achieve arbitrary code execution or other unspecified but likely severe consequences. The kernel's handling of malformed mach binaries creates a pathway for attackers to manipulate memory layout and potentially escalate privileges, making this issue particularly concerning for enterprise environments where macOS systems are prevalent.
The operational impact of CVE-2017-13834 is significant across multiple threat vectors within the ATT&CK framework, particularly under the T1059.007 technique for command and control communications and T1068 for exploit for privilege escalation. Attackers could leverage this vulnerability to establish persistent access to systems, potentially leading to full system compromise. The remote exploitation capability means that systems could be compromised without any user interaction, making this vulnerability particularly dangerous in environments where macOS systems are connected to untrusted networks. Organizations running affected macOS versions face substantial risk of data breaches, system compromise, and potential lateral movement within their networks.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability primarily focus on immediate system updates to macOS 10.13.1 or later versions, which contain the necessary kernel patches to address the memory corruption issue. Security administrators should also implement network monitoring to detect potential exploitation attempts through unusual mach binary communications or memory access patterns. Additional defensive measures include implementing application whitelisting policies to restrict execution of unknown mach binaries, conducting regular vulnerability assessments of macOS systems, and maintaining up-to-date threat intelligence feeds to identify potential exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of timely patch management in kernel-level security, as even minor version updates can address fundamental system stability and security concerns that could otherwise enable sophisticated attack campaigns.