CVE-2022-26765 - Race Condition Vulnerability in Apple Operating Systems: Bypassing Pointer Authentication through Improved State Handling

A recently discovered security vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2022-26765, affects multiple Apple operating systems, allowing a malicious attacker with arbitrary read and write capabilities to bypass Pointer Authentication. This issue was caused by a race condition and has been addressed through improved state handling in the recent releases of watchOS 8.6, tvOS 15.5, macOS Monterey 12.4, iOS 15.5, and iPadOS 15.5. In this article, we'll provide an in-depth look at the exploit details, code snippets, and the original references to help you understand the vulnerability and protect your devices and applications against potential attacks.

Background

Pointer authentication is a security mechanism implemented in various modern processors, offering protection against control-flow hijacking attacks by validating pointers before using them. Apple has implemented it in their A12 and later processors.

CVE-2022-26765 Exploit Details

The vulnerability arises due to a race condition, which occurs when multiple threads access shared data simultaneously, causing unexpected behavior. In this case, an attacker can exploit the race condition to compromise state handling in the operating system, leading to the ability to bypass the Pointer Authentication.

// Sample code to illustrate CVE-2022-26765 exploit
// NOTE: This is a simplified code snippet and should not be used for malicious purposes

#include <pthread.h>
#include <stddef.h>
#include <stdio.h>
#include <unistd.h>

// Arbitrary read function
void *arbitrary_read(void *arg) {
    while(1) {
        // Code snippet to perform arbitrary read operation
    }
}

// Arbitrary write function
void *arbitrary_write(void *arg) {
    while(1) {
        // Code snippet to perform arbitrary write operation
    }
}

int main(int argc, char *argv[]) {

    pthread_t read_thread, write_thread;

    // Create arbitrary read and write threads
    pthread_create(&read_thread, NULL, arbitrary_read, NULL);
    pthread_create(&write_thread, NULL, arbitrary_write, NULL);

    // Wait for threads to finish
    pthread_join(read_thread, NULL);
    pthread_join(write_thread, NULL);

    return ;
}

In this sample code snippet, two threads (read_thread and write_thread) perform arbitrary read and write operations concurrently, leading to potential exploitation of the vulnerability.

Solutions and Mitigations

Apple has addressed the race condition vulnerability in recent releases of its operating systems. Users are advised to update their devices and applications to the latest available versions:

Original References

For a complete and detailed understanding of this security issue, please refer to the following original sources and advisories:

- CVE-2022-26765 Official CVE Record
- Apple Security Advisory (watchOS)
- Apple Security Advisory (tvOS)
- Apple Security Advisory (macOS)
- Apple Security Advisory (iOS and iPadOS)

Conclusion

It is essential to familiarize yourself with emerging security threats and take necessary precautions to mitigate potential risks. In the case of CVE-2022-26765, users are advised to update their Apple OS devices to the latest versions and stay informed of any security updates related to these platforms.

Timeline

Published on: 05/26/2022 20:15:00 UTC
Last modified on: 06/08/2022 14:19:00 UTC