CVE-2025-24258: Root Privilege Escalation Vulnerability in Multiple macOS Versions

Overview

The cybersecurity landscape is ever-evolving, and one of the recent vulnerabilities that have come to light is the CVE-2025-24258. This vulnerability, found across multiple versions of macOS, poses a serious threat to the security of systems, allowing an app to potentially gain root privileges. This is a significant concern for businesses and individuals alike, as it can lead to potential system compromise and data leakage.
Root privileges allow unrestricted access to all commands and files on a system, bypassing the usual security restrictions. This vulnerability, if exploited, could give malicious actors the power to alter system configurations, delete crucial files, or install harmful software, leading to devastating consequences.

Vulnerability Summary

CVE ID: CVE-2025-24258
Severity: High (7.8 CVSS Score)
Attack Vector: Local
Privileges Required: Low
User Interaction: Required
Impact: Potential system compromise or data leakage

Affected Products

Product | Affected Versions

macOS Sequoia | Pre-15.4
macOS Ventura | Pre-13.7.6
macOS Sonoma | Pre-14.7.6

How the Exploit Works

The exploit takes advantage of a permissions issue in the operating system. More specifically, it involves an attacker exploiting the vulnerability by running a malicious application that can bypass the normal permission checks carried out by the system. This can allow the application to elevate its privileges to root level.
The exploit is particularly dangerous because it requires relatively low privileges to execute and can lead to a full system compromise. Furthermore, it requires user interaction, making systems with multiple users particularly vulnerable.

Conceptual Example Code

Let’s illustrate this with a conceptual example. Here’s a pseudo shell command that represents how the malicious application might attempt to gain root privileges:

#!/bin/bash
# A pseudo malicious script to exploit CVE-2025-24258
if [[ $(id -u) -ne 0 ]]
then
echo "Attempting to gain root privileges..."
# The malicious code that exploits the permissions issue goes here
sudo ./malicious_code
fi
if [[ $(id -u) -eq 0 ]]
then
echo "Root privileges obtained."
# The code that performs malicious actions as root goes here
rm -rf /
fi

This block of code is purely conceptual and illustrates the potential severity of this vulnerability. The actual exploit would involve complex manipulation of system calls and intricate knowledge of the macOS permission system.