Overview
The cybersecurity industry is currently closely monitoring a newly discovered vulnerability, CVE-2025-30442, that affects multiple versions of macOS. The vulnerability, if exploited, could enable an application to gain elevated privileges, potentially leading to system compromise or data leakage. Given the widespread use of macOS in both personal and professional settings, this vulnerability poses a significant risk that requires immediate attention.
This vulnerability stands out due to its severity score of 7.8 on the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS). This score indicates a high level of risk and should be a major concern for administrators and users alike.
Vulnerability Summary
CVE ID: CVE-2025-30442
Severity: High – CVSS 7.8
Attack Vector: Local
Privileges Required: Low
User Interaction: Required
Impact: Potential system compromise or data leakage
Affected Products
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Product | Affected Versions
macOS Sequoia | Prior to 15.4
macOS Ventura | Prior to 13.7.6
macOS Sonoma | Prior to 14.7.6
How the Exploit Works
The CVE-2025-30442 vulnerability is centered around the failure of macOS to sanitize input correctly. This allows a malicious application to pass in irregular input, which could lead to the application gaining elevated privileges. Once these privileges are obtained, the application can perform actions that are typically restricted, such as accessing sensitive data or manipulating system settings.
Conceptual Example Code
Below is an abstracted example of how the vulnerability might be exploited. This code is not meant to be a concrete example but a representation of how a malicious application might supply erroneous input.
// Sample malicious Swift application
import Foundation
let process = Process()
process.executableURL = URL(fileURLWithPath: "/path/to/vulnerable/system/process")
// Erroneous input that hasn't been sanitized
let maliciousInput = "\"; sudo rm -rf / ; echo \""
process.arguments = [maliciousInput]
try process.run()In this example, the malicious application is invoking a vulnerable system process with unsanitized input. The input is malicious in that it attempts to execute privileged commands, thereby exploiting the vulnerability to gain elevated privileges.
Please note that the code provided is a conceptual example and does not represent a real-life exploit. Always follow ethical guidelines when dealing with vulnerabilities and exploits.