CVE-2026-0924: BuhoCleaner Privilege Escalation Flaw

CVE-2026-0924 Overview

CVE-2026-0924 is a local privilege escalation vulnerability in BuhoCleaner, a macOS system cleaning utility. The application contains an insecure XPC (Cross-Process Communication) service that allows local, unprivileged users to escalate their privileges to root through the exploitation of insecure functions. This vulnerability enables attackers with local access to gain complete control over affected macOS systems.

Critical Impact

Local attackers can escalate from unprivileged user to root access, potentially leading to complete system compromise, data theft, malware installation, and persistent backdoor access on affected macOS systems.

Affected Products

• BuhoCleaner version 1.15.2
• macOS systems running vulnerable BuhoCleaner installations
• Systems with the insecure XPC service active

Discovery Timeline

• 2026-02-02 - CVE-2026-0924 published to NVD
• 2026-02-03 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2026-0924

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability stems from improper security controls in BuhoCleaner's XPC service implementation. XPC is Apple's inter-process communication mechanism that allows different processes to communicate with each other on macOS. When properly implemented, XPC services should validate the identity and authorization of connecting clients before performing privileged operations.

The vulnerability is classified under CWE-362 (Race Condition), indicating that the exploitation may involve timing-related issues in how the XPC service handles requests. This could allow an attacker to manipulate the service's state between security checks and privileged operations, a classic Time-of-Check to Time-of-Use (TOCTOU) pattern.

The local attack vector requires the attacker to have initial access to the target system, but the low privilege requirements mean any unprivileged local user can potentially exploit this vulnerability. The successful exploitation results in high impact to confidentiality, integrity, and availability, as the attacker gains root-level access.

Root Cause

The root cause of this vulnerability lies in the insecure implementation of the XPC service within BuhoCleaner. The application exposes privileged functionality through its XPC service without adequate validation of the calling process's authorization or identity. Combined with a race condition vulnerability (CWE-362), the service fails to properly synchronize security-critical operations, allowing attackers to exploit the timing gap between authorization checks and privileged action execution.

This is a common pattern in macOS privilege escalation vulnerabilities where helper tools running with elevated privileges fail to properly verify that requests originate from legitimate, authorized sources.

Attack Vector

The attack leverages the insecure XPC service by connecting to it from an unprivileged user context. The attacker can exploit the race condition by carefully timing malicious requests to bypass security checks. Since the XPC service runs with root privileges to perform system cleaning operations, successful exploitation grants the attacker root access to the system.

An attacker would typically craft a malicious application or script that connects to the BuhoCleaner XPC service and sends specially crafted messages to trigger the insecure functions. By exploiting the race condition, the attacker can manipulate the service into performing privileged operations on their behalf.

For technical details on the vulnerability mechanics, see the Fluid Attacks Security Advisory.

Detection Methods for CVE-2026-0924

Indicators of Compromise

• Unexpected connections to BuhoCleaner's XPC service from non-BuhoCleaner processes
• Unusual privilege escalation events correlating with XPC service activity
• New root-level processes spawned following interactions with the BuhoCleaner helper
• Suspicious process trees showing unprivileged users executing root commands through XPC mechanisms

Detection Strategies

• Monitor XPC service connections using macOS Endpoint Security Framework for unauthorized client processes
• Implement behavioral detection for privilege escalation patterns involving system utility helper tools
• Alert on unexpected root shell spawns or privilege changes following XPC service interactions
• Deploy SentinelOne's real-time behavioral AI to detect exploitation attempts targeting local privilege escalation

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable comprehensive logging for XPC service connections and privileged operations
• Monitor /Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/ directory for suspicious helper tool activity
• Track process ancestry to identify privilege escalation chains originating from XPC services
• Implement file integrity monitoring on BuhoCleaner installation directories

How to Mitigate CVE-2026-0924

Immediate Actions Required

• Identify all systems running BuhoCleaner version 1.15.2 and prioritize them for remediation
• Consider temporarily uninstalling BuhoCleaner until a patched version is available
• Restrict local user access to systems where the vulnerable application is installed
• Implement application allowlisting to prevent unauthorized exploitation tools from executing

Patch Information

Users should check the Dr. Buho official website for updates and security patches addressing this vulnerability. Monitor the Fluid Attacks Security Advisory for updated remediation guidance. Update to the latest available version of BuhoCleaner once a fix is released.

Workarounds

• Uninstall BuhoCleaner until a security patch is available to eliminate the attack surface
• Disable or remove the privileged helper tool associated with BuhoCleaner if the application is not critical
• Implement strict local user access controls to limit who can interact with the vulnerable XPC service
• Deploy endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions like SentinelOne to detect and block exploitation attempts

# Identify BuhoCleaner installation and helper tools
ls -la /Applications/BuhoCleaner.app
ls -la /Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/ | grep -i buho

# Check running BuhoCleaner processes
ps aux | grep -i buho

# Remove BuhoCleaner helper tool (if uninstalling)
sudo rm -rf /Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/com.drbuho.*