Privilege escalation in Apple macOS

1) Privilege escalation

EUVDB-ID: #VU6710

Risk: Low

CVSSv3.1: 7 [CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:P/RL:O/RC:C]

CVE-ID: CVE-2017-6978

CWE-ID: CWE-119 - Memory corruption

Exploit availability: Yes

Description

The vulnerability allows a local attacker to gain elevated privileges on the target system.

The weakness exists due to lack of bounds checking in HIServices custom CFObject serialization. A local attacker can run a specially crafted application, trigger memory corruption in the Accessibility Framework and gain system privileges.

Successful exploitation of the vulnerability results in privilege escalation.

Mitigation

Update to version 10.12.5.

Vulnerable software versions

macOS: 10.12.4 16E195

External links

http://support.apple.com/en-us/HT207797

Q & A

Can this vulnerability be exploited remotely?

No. This vulnerability can be exploited locally. The attacker should have authentication credentials and successfully authenticate on the system.

Is there known malware, which exploits this vulnerability?

No. We are not aware of malware exploiting this vulnerability. However, proof of concept for this vulnerability is available.