CVE-2025-24136 in macOS
Summary
by MITRE • 01/28/2025
This issue was addressed with improved validation of symlinks. This issue is fixed in macOS Ventura 13.7.3, macOS Sequoia 15.3, macOS Sonoma 14.7.3. A malicious app may be able to create symlinks to protected regions of the disk.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/31/2025
This vulnerability represents a critical symlink validation flaw that could enable malicious applications to bypass system security controls by creating symbolic links to protected disk regions. The issue stems from insufficient validation mechanisms that fail to properly inspect symlink targets before allowing their creation or traversal. Attackers could exploit this weakness to gain unauthorized access to sensitive system areas that should remain protected from user-space applications. The vulnerability affects macOS operating systems and specifically targets the kernel-level symlink handling mechanisms that govern file system access controls.
The technical implementation of this flaw involves the operating system's failure to adequately validate the target paths of symbolic links during creation or access operations. When a malicious application creates a symlink pointing to a protected system region, the system should verify that such access would not violate established security boundaries. However, the insufficient validation allows symlinks to be created that point to restricted areas of the disk, potentially enabling privilege escalation or information disclosure attacks. This vulnerability directly relates to CWE-59, which describes improper symlink handling in software, and represents a classic example of insufficient input validation that can lead to serious security consequences.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple unauthorized file access, potentially enabling sophisticated attack vectors that could compromise system integrity and confidentiality. An attacker could leverage this weakness to create symlinks that point to critical system files, configuration data, or protected user information, thereby bypassing standard access controls. The vulnerability could be exploited in conjunction with other attack techniques to escalate privileges or gain persistent access to the system. This type of vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.007, which covers the use of symbolic links for privilege escalation and persistence mechanisms.
The fix implemented in macOS versions 13.7.3, 14.7.3, and 15.3 addresses this issue through enhanced symlink validation protocols that rigorously check target paths against system security policies. These updates strengthen the kernel's symlink handling by implementing more comprehensive validation checks that prevent creation of symlinks pointing to protected regions. The mitigation strategy focuses on improving the integrity of the file system access control model by ensuring that all symlink operations undergo proper security validation before being accepted by the system. Organizations should immediately deploy these updates to protect against potential exploitation of this vulnerability.
Security practitioners should monitor for potential exploitation attempts targeting this specific vulnerability and implement additional defensive measures such as file system integrity monitoring and access control audits. The remediation process should include verification that all affected systems have received the appropriate security updates and that no unauthorized symlinks exist in critical system directories. Regular security assessments should verify that the enhanced symlink validation mechanisms are functioning correctly and that system access controls remain intact. This vulnerability demonstrates the importance of maintaining robust input validation controls in operating system components to prevent privilege escalation attacks.