CVE-2025-43470
📋 TL;DR
This CVE describes a permissions bypass vulnerability in macOS where a standard user can view files from a disk image belonging to an administrator. This affects macOS systems before version 26.1 (Tahoe). The vulnerability allows unauthorized access to potentially sensitive administrator files.
💻 Affected Systems
- macOS
📦 What is this software?
Macos by Apple
macOS is Apple's desktop and laptop operating system powering Mac computers used by millions of professionals, developers, creative professionals, and enterprise users worldwide. Built on a Unix foundation with the Darwin kernel and modern Cocoa frameworks, macOS delivers a seamless ecosystem integr...
Learn more about Macos →⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Administrator files containing sensitive data (passwords, configuration files, private documents) could be accessed by any standard user on the system, potentially leading to privilege escalation or data exfiltration.
Likely Case
Standard users can browse and read files from administrator-mounted disk images that should be restricted, potentially exposing sensitive work documents or configuration files.
If Mitigated
With proper access controls and user separation, impact is limited to viewing files that administrators have mounted from disk images, but no modification or system compromise.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires local access as a standard user and an administrator to have mounted a disk image. The user simply needs to attempt to access the mounted disk image.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: macOS Tahoe 26.1
Vendor Advisory: https://support.apple.com/en-us/125634
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open System Settings 2. Go to General > Software Update 3. Install macOS Tahoe 26.1 update 4. Restart when prompted
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Unmount administrator disk images
allAdministrators should unmount disk images when not actively using them to prevent unauthorized access.
hdiutil unmount /Volumes/[disk-image-name]
Use encrypted disk images
allAdministrators should use encrypted disk images that require authentication to access contents.
hdiutil create -encryption -size 1g -fs JHFS+ ~/encrypted.dmg
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict user separation policies - ensure administrators don't mount sensitive disk images on shared systems
- Monitor for unauthorized access attempts to administrator-mounted volumes using file access auditing
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check macOS version: if version is earlier than 26.1 and system has multiple user accounts, it is vulnerable.Check Version:
sw_versVerify Fix Applied:
Verify macOS version is 26.1 or later and test that standard users cannot access administrator-mounted disk images.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Failed authorization attempts for disk image access
- Standard user accessing administrator-mounted volumes
Network Indicators:
- None - this is a local file system vulnerability
SIEM Query:
source="macos" (event_type="file_access" AND user!="admin_user" AND path CONTAINS "/Volumes/")