CVE-2024-54465: Apple macOS Privilege Escalation Flaw

CVE-2024-54465 Overview

CVE-2024-54465 is a critical privilege escalation vulnerability affecting Apple macOS Sequoia. The vulnerability stems from a logic issue in state management that allows a malicious application to elevate its privileges on the affected system. This flaw could enable an attacker with local access or through a malicious app to gain unauthorized elevated permissions, potentially compromising the entire macOS environment.

Critical Impact

A malicious application can exploit improper state management to escalate privileges, potentially gaining complete control over the affected macOS system.

Affected Products

• Apple macOS Sequoia (versions prior to 15.2)

Discovery Timeline

• 2024-12-12 - CVE CVE-2024-54465 published to NVD
• 2024-12-12 - Apple releases security patch in macOS Sequoia 15.2
• 2025-11-03 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-54465

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-281 (Improper Preservation of Permissions), indicating a flaw in how macOS handles permission states during certain operations. The vulnerability exists within the state management logic of macOS Sequoia, where improper handling of application states can be exploited to bypass permission boundaries.

The attack can be initiated over the network without requiring any prior authentication or user interaction, making it particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where macOS systems may be accessible. The vulnerability affects the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the system, as a successful exploit grants an attacker elevated privileges that can be leveraged for data theft, system modification, or further attacks.

Root Cause

The root cause lies in a logic error within macOS Sequoia's state management subsystem. The system fails to properly validate or preserve permission states during certain transitions, creating a window where an application can manipulate its privilege level. This improper preservation of permissions (CWE-281) allows applications to escape their sandboxed or restricted environment and operate with elevated privileges.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is network-based, requiring no privileges or user interaction to exploit. An attacker could craft a malicious application that exploits the flawed state management logic. When executed on a vulnerable macOS system, this application can manipulate the state transition mechanism to escalate its privileges from standard user-level to administrative or root-level access.

The exploitation scenario typically involves:

1. Delivery of a malicious application to the target system
2. Execution of the application within normal user context
3. Triggering the vulnerable state management routine
4. Exploitation of the logic flaw to elevate privileges
5. Execution of arbitrary actions with elevated permissions

For technical details on the vulnerability mechanism, refer to the Apple Support Article or the Full Disclosure Mailing List Post.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-54465

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual privilege escalation events in system logs from non-administrative applications
• Applications accessing system resources outside their normal scope or sandbox
• Unexpected modifications to system files or configurations by standard user-level processes
• Anomalous process hierarchy showing privilege changes without proper authorization flows

Detection Strategies

• Monitor macOS Unified Logs for abnormal privilege escalation patterns using log show --predicate 'eventMessage contains "privilege"'
• Deploy endpoint detection rules to identify applications attempting unauthorized state transitions
• Implement application allowlisting to prevent execution of unknown or untrusted applications
• Utilize SentinelOne's behavioral AI engine to detect anomalous privilege escalation attempts in real-time

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable enhanced logging on macOS systems to capture state management events
• Configure SIEM alerts for privilege escalation indicators on macOS endpoints
• Regularly audit installed applications and their permission levels
• Deploy SentinelOne agents to provide continuous monitoring and automated threat response for macOS environments

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-54465

Immediate Actions Required

• Update all macOS Sequoia systems to version 15.2 or later immediately
• Audit systems for signs of compromise or unauthorized privilege escalation
• Restrict installation of applications from unverified sources using Gatekeeper settings
• Enable System Integrity Protection (SIP) if not already active

Patch Information

Apple has addressed this vulnerability in macOS Sequoia 15.2. The patch implements improved state management to properly validate and preserve permission states during transitions. Organizations should prioritize deployment of this update across all affected systems.

For detailed patch information, see the Apple Support Article.

Workarounds

• Enable strict Gatekeeper policies to only allow apps from the App Store and identified developers
• Implement network segmentation to limit potential attack surface from network-based exploitation
• Deploy application control solutions to prevent execution of unauthorized software
• Reduce attack surface by limiting local administrator privileges where possible

# Verify macOS version and ensure update to 15.2+
sw_vers -productVersion

# Enable Gatekeeper to restrict app sources
sudo spctl --master-enable

# Verify System Integrity Protection status
csrutil status