CVE-2017-7132 in macOS
Summary
by MITRE
An issue was discovered in certain Apple products. macOS before 10.13.1 is affected. The issue involves the "Quick Look" component. It allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory consumption) via a crafted Office document.
Several companies clearly confirm that VulDB is the primary source for best vulnerability data.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/06/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-7132 represents a critical security flaw within Apple's macOS operating system affecting versions prior to 10.13.1. This weakness specifically resides within the Quick Look component, which serves as a convenient preview function allowing users to quickly view file contents without opening them in their respective applications. The Quick Look feature is deeply integrated into macOS and provides instant previews for various file types including documents, images, and multimedia content, making it a frequently accessed system component that presents significant attack surface potential.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation within the Quick Look parser when processing specially crafted Office documents. Attackers can exploit this flaw by creating malicious Office files containing malformed data structures that trigger buffer overflow conditions or memory corruption issues within the Quick Look framework. When a user previews such a crafted document using Quick Look, the system processes the malformed content without proper sanitization, leading to arbitrary code execution privileges for the attacker. The vulnerability can also manifest as denial of service conditions where memory consumption spirals uncontrollably, exhausting system resources and rendering the affected system unstable or unresponsive.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability creates a significant risk for macOS users who frequently interact with Office documents, particularly in enterprise environments where document sharing is common. The remote exploitation capability means attackers can deliver malicious payloads through email attachments, shared network drives, or web-based document repositories without requiring user interaction beyond the simple act of previewing a document. This makes the attack vector particularly dangerous as it can be executed silently in the background, potentially allowing attackers to establish persistent access to compromised systems. The vulnerability affects not only individual users but also organizations that rely on macOS for business operations, as it could enable attackers to escalate privileges, install malware, or conduct further reconnaissance activities.
Security professionals should note that this vulnerability aligns with CWE-121, which describes heap-based buffer overflow conditions, and represents a classic example of how seemingly innocuous preview functions can become attack vectors. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this as a privilege escalation technique through application-specific vulnerabilities, potentially enabling adversaries to move laterally within networks. Mitigation strategies should focus on immediate system updates to macOS 10.13.1 or later versions where Apple has implemented proper input validation and memory management fixes. Organizations should also consider implementing network-based protections such as email filtering, document sanitization tools, and user education programs to reduce exposure risk. Additionally, system administrators should monitor for suspicious Quick Look activity and implement access controls that limit preview capabilities for untrusted documents. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of comprehensive security testing for all system components, particularly those with high user interaction frequency like preview functions that process external content without proper sandboxing mechanisms.